Max Verstappen has admitted that it was a "shame" his Red Bull car encountered problems at the crucial moment of qualifying for the Spanish Grand Prix. The Dutch driver was on provisional pole ahead of the final Q3 runs when he suffered what his team have confirmed to be a DRS failure, leaving him significantly down on straight-line speed. That left his F1 title rival, Charles Leclerc, free to snatch pole position with a near-perfect lap, despite taking his Ferrari for a spin only moments earlier. When asked if he would have claimed pole position, were it not for that DRS issue, Verstappen said: "I mean, it's always difficult to tell, but I couldn't do my final run. Either the DRS didn't open or I just lost power, so it's a bit of a shame. "I think, overall, to be on the front row for us here, looking at the whole weekend so far, was a good achievement, but I would have liked to go for that final run."
Verstappen hopeful Red Bull can fight from behind
Despite the Saturday disappointment, Verstappen will head into race day full of confidence thanks to a car that has made a habit of being gentle on its tyres. Red Bull have used races to fight from behind and win in both Imola and Miami, a trick that their World Champion driver will be looking to repeat in Barcelona. "The last few races we seemed pretty decent on the tyres," Verstappen said. "Of course, tomorrow will be very hot, very warm. This track will be quite tough to pass [on], but let's see. "Hopefully, of course, our car will be again a bit kinder on the tyres, but it's a bit difficult to tell at the moment."
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