Red Bull RB21 dog 'an eternity' behind McLaren, Marko laments

(GMM) Red Bull has admitted to being caught off guard by a lack of grip of the RB21 dog of a car in Brazil, leaving Max Verstappen only P6 in sprint qualifying at one of his favorite circuits – and at a crucial moment in the three-way championship fight.

“Quite simply, grip,” said team advisor Dr Helmut Marko when asked to explain the deficit. “We’re quite good in sectors 1 and 3, but we’re losing four tenths in sector 2.

“The soft tire seems to be difficult in general – everyone is having problems with it, except for McLaren. Four tenths in the middle sector is an eternity on such a short track,” he said.

Marko hinted at setup issues, which he hopes can be improved after parc ferme lifts at the checkered flag following the sprint race on Saturday.

“We have some ideas,” he said, though he admitted the team was low on confidence. “We hear it’s going to rain tomorrow, so we might not get a chance to solve this. The Grand Prix is the most important race.”

Some observers, however, suspect Red Bull may have deliberately tuned Verstappen’s car for the huge storm forecast for Saturday – so severe the FIA is even permitting teams to close their garages for safety.

Dutch commentator Olav Mol told Ziggo Sport: “I have the feeling Max was much more focused on the weather forecast than we all think. Let me cautiously hope so – because that could be the only explanation for why he’s sixth fastest.”

Marko downplayed that theory, however. “If it rains, Max is in a class of his own,” he admitted. “On the other hand, that means we can’t make any changes for the Grand Prix. We’d have to take a gamble without any information.

“But we have nothing to lose – we have to go for it.”

Laurent Mekies, Team Principal of Oracle Red Bull Racing and Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing talk in the garage during practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil at Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace on November 07, 2025 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool //

Verstappen, meanwhile, sounded genuinely frustrated after stepping out of the RB21. “It was just awful,” he told Viaplay.

“I was hoping for a better car. The way it feels now, it’s not going to be good. I have absolutely no grip. The car doesn’t want to turn in. We’re missing something.”

McLaren boss Andrea Stella laughed off any suggestion of relief at Verstappen’s struggles. “It’s Max! I never trust him,” he joked.

“No matter where he starts, he’ll move up. We need to focus on ourselves.”

It was a strong session for McLaren – Lando Norris took sprint pole ahead of Kimi Antonelli, while Oscar Piastri secured third after several difficult weekends and ongoing swirling speculation.

“I think he’s back in form here in Brazil,” Stella said of Piastri. “Although I’m sure he wants to improve by another tenth.”

Piastri agreed: “It feels better than in recent weeks. I had a couple of big mistakes on my lap, but I felt much more comfortable than the last two weekends.”