Max tenth in Barcelona: 'Frustrating I had to give the place back'

Published on 01 June 2025 by Stefan Meens

Max Verstappen finished tenth in the Spanish Grand Prix after looking set for a podium behind the two McLarens. Following a late safety car, Max crossed the line if fifth but was demoted to tenth after receiving a ten second time penalty. Oscar Piastri won his fifth Grand Prix of the 2025 campaign, ahead of McLaren teammate Lando Norris and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

“We tried three stops, and it went quite well”, explained Max. “We needed to because the tyres wore quickly. Third place seemed secured, but unfortunately, we didn’t have tyres left when the safety car came out. We did have a set of softs, but they were five or six laps old, so that wasn’t ideal.”

The team switched Max to the hard Pirellis for the final laps of the race. “That tyre was not the right one. With six laps to go, everyone could go flat out, and I really had a lot less grip on the hards. Nobody expected the hards to be this bad. Maybe it would’ve been better to have stayed out, but that’s easy to say with hindsight.”

The race ended on a sour note for Max after incidents with Leclerc and Russell. The collision with the Mercedes resulted in the time penalty. “I had no grip, so the car slid in the last corner. After that, I was hit in the middle of the straight. And then turn one... you can make up your own mind about that one, but I think it’s clear. Of course I was frustrated I had to give the place back. I wasn’t happy with it, I think that was clear too. In the end I got the penalty for that one moment, but it is what it is.”

At the start of the race, both pole sitter Piastri and third placed Max enjoy a good launch. The Australian retains the lead with Max slotting in behind, overtaking Norris into turn one. The Red Bull racer stays sandwiched between the two McLarens until Norris breezes past Max on lap thirteen. A lap later, Max dives into the pits for his first of three scheduled stops.

He rejoins in eighth and is making the most of the grip on his new softs by setting several fastest laps on the trot utilising the undercut to pressure Norris. When both McLarens pit, Max filters through to the race lead. However, the Dutchman has gone for a three-stop strategy, with the McLarens opting for one stop less.

Max is not happy with the handling of the car in his second stint and visits the pits for a set of mediums on lap 30, rejoining in fourth, behind the McLarens and Leclerc. The latter is passed quickly as Max attempts to limit the gap to the front.

Max completes his third pit stop on lap 48, switching to a set of the soft tyres. In the subsequent two laps, the McLarens of Norris and Piastri make their scheduled final stops, leaving the top three unchanged.

On lap 55, Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes is struck by a power-unit failure. The young Italian is forced to park the car in the gravel traps in turn ten, prompting race control to deploy the safety car. With six laps to go, the race is restarted. Piastri and Norris comfortably lead coming out the last corner, with Max needing all of his talent to collect the RB21 sliding on the exit of the final turn. Leclerc can capitalise and passes the Dutchman on the run down the start/finish straight, with the pair briefly touching.

Upon arriving at the first corner, George Russell attempts to overtake Max, but forces the Red Bull wide, prompting Max to use to escape road. The reigning champion rejoins in fourth but is asked by the team to give the position to Russell. A collision between the pair at turn five results in Max receiving a ten second time penalty. It means he is classified tenth, despite crossing the line in fifth.

At the very front, McLaren take a comfortable 1-2 victory with Piastri winning his fifth Grand Prix of the season. The most surprising name in the top ten is Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber, with the German clinching fifth.

Results Grand Prix Spain: