Formula 1 News: Verstappen to start Sao Paulo GP from pitlane

Max Verstappen’s (pictured) Sao Paulo Grand Prix odyssey has plunged into full crisis mode, with the four-time world champion consigned to a pitlane start for Sunday’s main event at Interlagos— a fallout from his shocking Q1 elimination and Red Bull’s decision to change the car and engine.

–by Mark Cipolloni–

In a display that’s sent shockwaves through the Interlagos paddock, Verstappen could only limp to 16th on the provisional grid, while teammate Yuki Tsunoda anchored the field in 19th. For the first time since the 2006 Japanese Grand Prix, Red Bull failed to advance a single car beyond Q1—a damning indictment of the RB21’s woes amid a weekend that’s unraveled from sprint struggles to outright despair.

The Dutchman’s session was a masterclass in frustration, the car starved of grip and hemorrhaging time in the downforce-hungry middle sector. “It’s just no grip,” Verstappen fumed post-session, his voice edged with disbelief. “We changed a few things on the car and it didn’t work—so that’s something we need to figure out. Nothing really seems to work. We change a lot on the setup, and yeah, we just don’t understand.”

He even rolled the dice by reverting to the older floor specification—the one Tsunoda had nursed through the sprint—but it proved a false dawn, leaving the RB21 “hopping and sliding around like it was on ice,” as he’d later vent. No reaction from the tweaks, no lifeline from the aero switcheroo; just a gnawing sense that “something is clearly just not working for us. Even with the changes, normally you’d feel some kind of reaction, but it doesn’t. So, yeah, something is just really off.”

With no illusions left, Red Bull has invoked the nuclear option: shattering parc ferme to unleash a barrage of modifications. Expect a fresh setup overhaul, dialing back the risky ride-height experiments that promised compliance but pilfered precious traction, alongside a full revert to proven floor elements. But the crown jewel? A brand-new power unit suite—most likely a complete engine swap, turbo, MGU-H, MGU-K, and energy store—pushing Verstappen beyond his 2025 allocation and typically inviting grid penalties.

In this pitlane purgatory, though, those drops are moot; the parc ferme breach already seals his fate at the back of the pack. The silver lining? Unshackled reliability and tactical freedom for the season’s frantic finale, a godsend as Red Bull claws at McLaren’s constructors’ lead.

A visibly downcast Verstappen didn’t sugarcoat the title implications after his early bath. “Where we are starting, that’s not going to work,” he snapped, dismissing any Sunday miracle. “With these kind of performances, forget about it.” And on the championship? Brutal honesty: “I can forget about the title.” His deficit to leader Lando Norris has ballooned to 39 points, rubber-stamped by the Briton’s sprint triumph on Saturday.

Tsunoda, meanwhile, snags a minor reprieve, shuffling up to the ninth row as Haas’ Esteban Ocon joins the pitlane exiles for his own mechanical mischief.

As Sao Paulo’s shadows lengthen over Red Bull’s nadir, the gambit hangs in the balance: Will these surgical strikes resurrect the RB21’s bite, fueling a Verstappen charge through Interlagos’ chaos? Or has the once-dominant team finally cracked under the weight of their own innovations? The checkered flag, as ever, will judge.