Max Verstappen’s performance in Las Vegas was described by his team boss as a “masterclass.” He out psyched Lando Norris on the way to the grid by hanging back some distance from the McLaren driver, who complained about this tactic over team radio to his engineer Will Joseph.
Such was the level of distraction caused by the world champion that Norris failed to deliver the extra burnouts completed by the rest of the field which left his tyres colder than his rival who made a better start when the lights went out.
Dr. Helmut Marko, special advisor to the Red Bull teams believed his driver had owned the race weekend and found a number of the McLaren team radio messages so far fetched they were hilarious.
McLaren over optimistic radio message
Having claimed the lead at turn one as his McLaren championship rival ran wide defending the corner he was threatened briefly by George Russell for a handful of laps before the Mercedes driver damaged his tyres sufficiently to ruin his race strategy.
Russell was forced to pit on lap 17 for fresh rubber, whilst Verstappen was able to continue for another 8 laps and return once again in the lead of the race.
Lando Norris faired better on his fresh set of rubber, picking up the pace and passing Russell with ease. McLaren appeared to be emboldened by his efforts telling the British driver “we’re going to get Max” in what proved to be a forlorn and wild optimistic rallying call.
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Marko mocks McLaren
Max was informed of the McLaren team radio message and appeared humoured by the situation as easily matched and bettered Norris’ times over the next several laps.
“He was able to easily maintain the pace of those behind him and therefore save the tyres,” Marko says after the race. “We also stayed out longer than everyone else. Of course, we knew the condition of the competitors’ tyres and the funniest thing was the message that came from McLaren: ‘Attack Max, overtake him.’ And then he hammered in one fastest lap after another, just to make things clear.”
The 83 year old Austrian marvelled at the “ease” and “confidence” with which the Reed Bull driver ran his race noting there were no problems with the car either unlike the drama that was unfolding at McLaren.
“But from the first lap… I wouldn’t say [Max] won the start. He won the first corner and practically forced Norris into the mistake.” Marko concluded the evening in Sin City was another “unbelievable Max Verstappen show.”
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Mekies effusive in his praise of Max
Verstappen cruised to victory some 20 seconds ahead of Lando Norris who dramatically dropped off the pace by over two seconds a lap as the race drew to a conclusion. At the time most believed the huge drop off in lap time was due to a lack of fuel but far worse awaited the McLaren driver.
Red Bull team principal, Laurent Mekies, was effusive in his review of Verstappen’s night race along The Strip. “It was masterclass from him, no question.” He further noted that his driver was driving within himself and whatever was thrown at him he responded to with ease.
“I think he had probably even more pace than what we have seen in the car,” said Mekies. “There was a couple of times in the second stint where we asked him to increase the pace when Lando was pushing, and every time it was necessary, he increased the pace.”
McLaren’s big setup mistake in Vegas
The Frenchman was particularly pleased with how the team had fared in a tricky weekend, where non of the practice sessions had gone to plans with red flags and wet weather preventing anyone from concluding their proper preparations.
“To be that strong on Sunday, tyre degradation, execution, race pace, I think it’s a big well done to Max for nailing it again,” Mekies added.
McLaren tried something different in Las Vegas this year following a race in 2024 which saw them suffer extreme tyre degradation. The MCL39 usually runs with a rake like setup where the rear end of the car is higher than the nose.
Both Piastri’s and Norris’ cars were notably more flat in their sider on profile, with the rear end lowered in an effort to prevent front tyre graining. This unfortunately led to excessive wear of the underfloor skid blocks which saw both McLaren’s disqualified after the race.
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McLaren deceived their drivers in Sin City
The team appeared to be aware of the potential issue as early as lap five, when Lando Norris was told to lift and coast into the heavy braking zones. This prevents the nose diving and the plank hitting the ground, but despite there driver’s efforts, the plank wore down excessively regardless.
There is some speculation from paddock sources, that McLaren discovered their plight during the installation laps on the way to the grid. Yet they deceived their drivers during the race, preventing the lift and coast instructions as vital for tyre preservation.
All eyes now turn to Qatar, where paddock opinion suggests this will be a McLaren weekend. The high speed nature of the circuit suits the design philosophy of the MCL39.
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Qatar no walk over for McLaren
Whilst Lando Norris claimed pole in the 2024 Sprint at the Lusail circuit he slowed towards the end of the 1/3rd distance race to allow his team mate through. He explained it was to return the favour Piastri had offered him previously in Austin, given all hope of catching Verstappen in the drivers’ title race was now gone.
Yet come Saturday afternoon, Verstappen was top of the timesheets but a protest from Georg Russell saw him receive a one place grid drop. Despite this he claimed the lead from Russell easily at the start going on to claim victory.
Meanwhile McLaren have never won in Qatar, despite identifying it as one of the circuits which suits their car design philosophy. Will they suffer another chaotic weekend as the Sprint format awaits?
Whatever their efforts, Marko merely laughs, whilst Verstappen delivers on track in his usual peerless fashion.
McLaren admit Verstappen ‘out psyched’ Norris in Vegas
The third running of the las Vegas Grand Prix was an extraordinary weekend. Charles Leclerc briefly raised Ferrari\s hopes by being quickest in FP1 whilst Yuki Tsunoda was third behind Alex Albon but a tenth quicker than his world champion team mate.
Red Flags in effect cancelled the last twenty minutes of the FP2 session, meaning the teams lost valuable data being unable to complete long run race simulations.
Come Saturday morning the rain was ever present and the session was run mostly with cars on the intermediate Pirelli tyres. At the start of qualifying, the rain had intensified and those who opted for the intermediates were quickly recalled to fit the full rain blue sided Pirelli P1…. READ MORE
A.J. Hunt is Senior Editor at TJ13, where Andrew oversees editorial standards and contributes to the site’s Formula 1 coverage. A career journalist with experience in both print and digital sports media, Andrew trained in investigative journalism and has written for a range of European sports outlets.
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