Max Verstappen: With slipstream into the front row at Spa

– At the Belgian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen starts from second position. The reason for this is not only the convincing performance of his RB22 on the Ardennes rollercoaster but also the assistance of his teammate Isack Hadjar in the third sector.

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On the way from the exit of the Stavelot curve to the Bus Stop chicane, Verstappen was able to benefit from the slipstream of his teammate. The latter had previously waited for him at the exit of Stavelot to then pull him through the Blanchimont section. Before the braking point towards the Bus Stop chicane, Hadjar then moved to the left and cleared the way for Verstappen.

This allowed the Red Bull driver to find almost two tenths of a second compared to Lando Norris and set the second-best time in Q3. Accordingly, the four-time world champion was very satisfied after the session on the radio: “Well done! That was really, really well executed! Thank you, guys!”

Without this time gain, Verstappen could not only have been behind George Russell’s Mercedes but also behind Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton. In the starting grid itself, Norris, who was classified third, would not be a factor as he will start the race on Sunday with a grid penalty. The same applies, by the way, to Hadjar.

F1: Belgian Grand Prix (Spa) 2026

“[The slipstream] certainly helped me,” said Verstappen after qualifying. “Otherwise, I wouldn’t be standing here now. I think it would have been P6 or so.”

“Isack did really good work with the slipstream in the last sector, considering he will start at the back of the field anyway. That’s why we are here now.”

Nevertheless, Verstappen emphasizes in the same breath: “Tomorrow, with all the people around me, I will often look in my mirrors. But at least today we achieved a good result. The car has been pretty good all weekend. Of course, it’s not on the level of what Kimi delivers.”

Despite the help from his teammate, Verstappen had no chance to secure pole position. He was more than three tenths of a second behind Antonelli’s Mercedes, the largest gap so far in qualifying between P1 and P2 in the 2026 season.

“But,” said Verstappen, “we are of course very happy to be on the front row thanks to the way we executed this as a team.”

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Sky expert Timo Glock also praised this team play: “Hats off to executing that in Q3 […]” were the words of the former Formula 1 driver on Sky Sport F1. “In the end, it’s the timing that has to fit between Isack [Hadjar] and Max Verstappen.”

Glock especially praises Hadjar here in the highest terms: “Hats off to Isack Hadjar, who adjusted that so well after the first outing. That’s optimal! You can’t do it better than he did. Hats off!”

Already on the radio, the 21-year-old received the obligatory praise: “I know it wasn’t fun, but we will get it back,” were the words of his race engineer after the session. “Thank you!”

The daily F1 show for the Belgian Grand Prix!

Hadjar himself describes the management of the team play as follows: “It’s difficult to estimate how much power the engine provides you. Because if you lift off after turn 14 and then [ask for power again], it confuses the engine and the software a bit, because you stopped for no reason.”

“So in the first attempt in Q3, I had too much power and pulled away from [Verstappen]. In the second attempt, I didn’t have enough [power], so he caught me, and I couldn’t give him slipstream for the entire straight. That was all very difficult to estimate.”

When asked how Hadjar will be repaid for this favor, the Red Bull driver laughs: “Money.”

Finally, the eighth-placed driver in the Formula 1 World Championship explains on this topic: “I don’t know. I don’t care.”

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