Max Verstappen, despite his second-place finish, didn’t feel good about his sprint qualification at Spa-Francorchamps. The Dutchman was bothered by the fact that he conceded almost half a second to polesitter Oscar Piastri.
“If I look at the gap, this is not what we want,” said the 27-year-old Verstappen to F1 TV. “We’re trying to improve, but other teams are too. It’s no surprise that the gap is so big. It was already that big in practice.”
Verstappen has actually been slower than both McLaren drivers all season, but he did manage to qualify ahead of number three Lando Norris at Spa. Charles Leclerc finished fourth and Esteban Ocon surprisingly finished fifth in the Haas.
“We have to look at ourselves, work on the balance and try to go faster. If you are half a second slower per lap, it doesn’t matter that you are fast on the straight,” said Verstappen, who doesn’t seem to have the illusion that he can win the sprint race on Saturday.
Verstappen’s teammate Yuki Tsunoda had to settle for twelfth place in the sprint qualification. Mercedes driver George Russell finished thirteenth and Lewis Hamilton even has to start the sprint race at Spa in eighteenth.
The sprint race starts on Saturday at 12:00 PM. Verstappen, the number three in the World Championship standings, starts the Grand Prix weekend with a 69-point deficit to Piastri. The main race is scheduled for Sunday at 3:00 PM.