Max Verstappen spies glimmer of hope in defeating 'incredible' McLaren

06/05/2025 07:50

Max Verstappen believes Red Bull could get ahead of "incredible" McLaren, but only on tracks where overtaking is difficult.  Red Bull was thumped by McLaren in the Miami GP, with Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris both, eventually, passing Verstappen, who came home fourth, 39.9s behind winner Piastri.  Despite the superior race pace of the MCL39, Verstappen has taken three of the six pole positions on offer in 2025, including in Miami, and believes some tracks coming up could provide an opportunity for Red Bull - but only if it executes flawlessly. "It is the pure performance of the car," Verstappen told media including RacingNews365 of McLaren's dominance. "But also the management they have on their tyres is incredible." When asked if solving the balance issues of the RB21 could mean Red Bull matching McLaren, Verstappen hinted that "we will struggle, of course, with overheating." Given the pace advantage of the MCL39, the Dutchman was also questioned about beating Piastri and Norris, and pointed to some tracks coming up where a lack of overtaking could aid his cause. "I'm looking forward to some tracks that I enjoy driving now, and with the gap they have, I mean, realistically, you don't have a big chance," he said. "But maybe on tracks where you can't pass, you do have a chance, and we will see what happens. Monaco has not been our strongest track in the past, but sometimes it comes all together, but you can't bank on that all the time."