While Max Verstappen‘s charge from the pit lane to the podium in Formula 1‘s Sao Paulo Grand Prix was lauded, it showed a glaring missed opportunity for Red Bull.
Following a shocking first-ever Q1 knockout on pure pace, Red Bull completely changed the Dutchman’s set-up and added a completely new power unit to his RB21.
And despite an early slow puncture, Verstappen tore through the field to come home in third place, matching the 16-place climb that saw him win the race in 2024.
However, in the midst of Verstappen’s mega recovery drive lies a missed opening for Red Bull, something which Verstappen’s searing pace at Interlagos underlined.
Despite starting from the pit lane, Verstappen was on average the fastest car throughout the Grand Prix in Brazil, quicker than both McLarens and the Mercedes duo.
Ultimately, Red Bull opted to concede the track position, believing that beating Lando Norris was unrealistic and pitting was the best strategy to secure the podium.
Although if Verstappen’s pace said anything about the race, it was that Red Bull missed a big opportunity in Brazil, as he ended up just 10 seconds behind at the end.
A costly miscalculation
It was revealed by Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies that Verstappen’s unexpected Q1 exit was down to a miscalculation with some set-up changes.
Red Bull decided to risk the set-up revisions in the hope of solving a few balance issues that the Dutchman had felt during the earlier Sprint Race.
Verstappen finished fourth in the Sprint, aided by Oscar Piastri’s costly error, yet barely threatened the top three, pushing Red Bull to take a risk.
“The simple truth is that we were not happy with where the car was in terms of balance and driver’s feeling after the Sprint Race,” Mekies told media including Motorsport Week.
“Nobody wanted to settle for a car that would have been sub-optimal. We felt the optimum window was not where we were.
“We tried our only car at that moment [Verstappen’s] to change it before the main qualifying, we obviously got it wrong, but it’s the way we go racing.”
Red Bull’s miscalculation, while costly, allowed a complete overhaul of Verstappen’s car in terms of set-up, as well as reportedly switching back to the Austin floor.
It also allowed for a completely new power unit to be installed in Verstappen’s RB21, another crucial advantage towards the Dutchman’s recovery drive.
This combined perfectly to assist Verstappen’s charge back through the field and onto the rostrum, although it posed the question of what might have been.
An opportunity missed
With Verstappen’s impressive damage limitation run to the podium, the question is what more could have been achieved if Red Bull had got it all right?
While it looked like McLaren, and especially Norris, looked untouchable in Sao Paulo, Verstappen’s pace would have surely put the cat amongst the pigeons.
Had Verstappen’s set-up been right from the start, he would have more than likely been in the mix for victory, especially if the pace on race day is anything to go by.
The Dutchman praised the work put in by his engineers to overhaul his RB21, highlighting the car’s extra responsiveness in the race compared to qualifying.
“Yeah, just a very strong race. I think we, yeah, just had a much better pace,” he explained.
“I mean, of course, today also I think it was a bit colder, which maybe helped us. The car just felt a bit more responsive.”
It’s hard to know exactly what would have transpired if Red Bull had got it spot on from the start, but it would have made the championship picture less clear-cut.
The Dutchman had already written off his title chances after his surprise Q1 exit, and even a podium finish has done little to minimise the eventual damage.
Verstappen now lies 49 points behind Norris with three weekends to go, with an eight-point swing in Norris’ favour enough to eliminate him from contention.
While Brazil will likely not be the reason Verstappen loses his crown in 2025, had things gone a little differently, the hunt for a fifth title could still have been on.
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