Verstappen not surprised to qualify fifth for Italian Grand Prix

  • Published on 06 Sep 2020 12:30
  • comments 0
  • By: Coilin Higgins

Red Bull's Max Verstappen has admitted he is not surprised to see the team struggling at Monza, managing only fifth in Saturday's qualifying.

Verstappen will start today's race behind both the McLaren of Carlos Sainz and the Racing Point of Sergio Perez, while teammate Alexander Albon will start the race in ninth after having his first lap time in Q3 deleted for exceeding track limits.

Speaking to Sky F1 after the race, Verstappen noted how he wasn't surprised to only qualify in fifth place, saying how he struggled using various setups and wing levels all weekend and that the team seemed to struggle in practice over the weekend.

"Not this weekend," Verstappen said.

"The whole weekend we have been struggling a bit. I tried everything, I tried all the wing levels which are possible to run at Monza and at the end the lap time was the same.

"It just shows that when we are low downforce, the car is still not where we want it to be. Just struggling a bit for balance and grip in general so there are things to look into.

"It's easy to say we are down on power, but that's not an excuse. A lot of things we have to work on.

Verstappen also believed part of the reason behind the disappointing performance was down to the nature of the Monza circuit, which is known for its long straights and low-downforce configuration.

The Dutch driver said he was ready to go for the best result he can achieve in the race but would hope to be able to fight for P3 on merit when the season returns to circuits more reliant on downforce.

"Monza is a very special track anyway," Verstappen added.

"When we go back to, let's say, a more normal layout, I expect to see P3 again but it's still not good enough from our side."

Replies (0)

Login to reply

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 

World Championship standings 2025

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
14 - Mar 16
Australia
21 - Mar 23
China
4 - Apr 6
Japan
11 - Apr 13
Bahrain
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia
2 - May 4
United States of America
16 - May 18
Italy
23 - May 25
Monaco
30 - Jun 1
Spain
13 - Jun 15
Canada
27 - Jun 29
Austria
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom
25 - Jul 27
Belgium
1 - Aug 3
Hungary
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands
5 - Sep 7
Italy
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan
3 - Oct 5
Singapore
17 - Oct 19
United States of America
24 - Oct 26
Mexico
7 - Nov 9
Brazil
21 - Nov 23
United States of America
28 - Nov 30
Qatar
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
14 - Mar 16
Australia Albert Park
21 - Mar 23
4 - Apr 6
11 - Apr 13
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
2 - May 4
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
16 - May 18
23 - May 25
Monaco Monte Carlo
30 - Jun 1
13 - Jun 15
27 - Jun 29
Austria Red Bull Ring
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom Silverstone
25 - Jul 27
1 - Aug 3
Hungary Hungaroring
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
5 - Sep 7
Italy Monza
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
3 - Oct 5
17 - Oct 19
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
24 - Oct 26
7 - Nov 9
Brazil Interlagos
21 - Nov 23
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
28 - Nov 30
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Driver profile

  • Team Red Bull Racing
  • Points 3,179
  • Podiums 117
  • Grand Prix 219
  • Country NL
  • Date of b. Sep 30 1997 (27)
  • Place of b. Hasselt (Belgie), NL
  • Weight 70 kg
  • Length 1.8 m
Show full profile

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar