Max Verstappen qualifies P5 in Barcelona: 'Better than expected'

Published on 13 June 2026 by Kees-Jan Koster

Max Verstappen has qualified in fifth place for the Barcelona Grand Prix. In an exciting qualifying session, the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver looked set for a top-three result during his final flying lap in Q3, but lost some time in the final sector. With a lap time of 1:15.021, Max ultimately had to settle for P5, finishing more than three tenths of a second slower than pole-sitter George Russell in the Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton qualified second in his Ferrari, while championship leader Kimi Antonelli secured third on the grid for Mercedes.

After qualifying, Max explained what happened at the end of his final push lap: “I got to turn 10 and suddenly had no grip left. Through turns 10, 11 and 12, the whole sequence just was not working anymore. Somehow we no longer had the same level of grip. I turned in at exactly the same point, but in turn 12, for example, the car drifted wider than normal. It is a bit strange, but that has been the case all weekend, the car is not quite doing what I want it to. Sometimes it turns in, sometimes it does not, sometimes the rear steps out, and that naturally makes it very difficult to drive right on the limit. I have to say the first two sectors were fairly good, but in the final sector it just was not there.”

Asked what he had lost in the final sector, Max replied: “We had a chance at third place. In that respect, it was a much better qualifying session than expected. I thought we would end up around seventh or eighth. It helps that one car was not competing in Q3, but it was very close, closer than expected, so that is encouraging.”

Verstappen was still uncertain about his prospects for the race: “It is going to be tough, with a lot of tyre degradation. I have no idea whether we will be able to fight at the front or not, but ultimately it is about finding the best possible balance and managing the tyres well. None of the tyre compounds feel particularly good, so it is going to be a bit of a survival race.”

With an ambient temperature of 31°C and a track temperature reaching 52°C, conditions were extremely hot at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as qualifying began. When the lights turned green, only the midfield drivers initially ventured out. After just over five minutes, Max was the first of the frontrunners to begin a flying lap. On soft tyres, he posted a 1:16.352, briefly putting him at the top of the timesheets. However, both Ferraris, the McLarens and the Mercedes drivers soon went faster, with Hamilton setting the quickest time, around seven tenths ahead of Verstappen. Max returned to the pits and, like the drivers ahead of him, chose not to go out again. His eighth-fastest time was enough to comfortably progress to Q2.

The drivers eliminated in Q1 were: Esteban Ocon (P17), Alexander Albon (P18), Sergio Perez (P19), Valtteri Bottas (P20), while the struggling Aston Martin team occupied the back row with Lance Stroll in 21st and home favourite Fernando Alonso in 22nd. This brought Alonso’s streak to an end after outqualifying team-mate Stroll 42 times in succession.

At the start of Q2, Max headed out on a brand-new set of soft tyres. On the fresh rubber, the Dutchman recorded a 1:15.484, again briefly taking P1. However, several drivers soon improved on his benchmark, dropping him to fifth place, although he was only a quarter of a second behind the fastest man, Russell. The entire top six opted not to go out again, and sixth place was enough for Max to advance safely to Q3. Eliminated in Q2 were: Arvid Lindblad (P11), Gabriel Bortoleto (P12), Franco Colapinto (P13), Pierre Gasly (P14), Oliver Bearman (P15) and Carlos Sainz (P16).

In Q3, Max once again went out early. Shortly after completing his first flying lap with a time of 1:15.328, the session was red-flagged. Charles Leclerc had a heavy accident at Turn 4. The Monegasque lost the rear of his Ferrari, corrected the slide, and was sent straight into the tyre barriers. Leclerc was able to climb out of the damaged Ferrari unharmed. At that point, Oscar Piastri was fastest, with Verstappen second, while several drivers behind them were unable to complete their laps because of the red flag.

After a ten-minute delay, the session resumed. Russell moved into first place, while team-mate Antonelli could manage only the fourth-fastest time, behind Verstappen. All remaining drivers then embarked on one final run. Russell successfully held on to top spot by improving to a 1:15.145, securing his third pole position of the season. Hamilton finished second, just 0.064 seconds behind Russell, while Antonelli claimed third on the grid. Lando Norris qualified fourth, just ahead of Verstappen in fifth. On his final flying lap, Max set a 1:15.021, leaving him more than three tenths behind Russell. Isack Hadjar completed an all-Red Bull third row in sixth, while Piastri qualified seventh. Liam Lawson was best of the rest in eighth, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg in ninth. Leclerc, following his crash, rounded out the top ten.

The Spanish Grand Prix gets underway on Sunday at 3:00 pm.

Results qualifying Barcelona-catalunya: