Max Verstappen reveals tyre management at the F1 2025 Chinese GP was the secret that allowed him to steal fourth place from Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton as the four-time world champion came alive at the end of the race with blistering pace.
The Dutchman didn’t expect much to come out of the 56 laps at the Shanghai International Circuit on March 23 and for the opening portion of the race, that’s how it appeared to be transpiring.
He was dropped by the McLarens, Ferraris and George Russell ahead whilst he found himself having to focus on Kimi Antonelli and the Racing Bulls behind, electing to settle into a tyre preservation rhythm.
Even after the pit stops, he didn’t seem as though he had the pace to make an impression on the Grand Prix without a red flag or safety car bringing the 27-year-old back into contention but that turned out to be a false illusion.
He gradually began to reign in Hamilton and took considerable chunks of lap time out of the British seven-time world champion, who opted to pit for a two-stop strategy instead of being overtaken.
From there, Verstappen continued to come to life as he unleashed blistering pace and hounded down Leclerc by picking off the Ferrari with an exceptional move at Turn 3 that he set up all the way back in Turn 14, and he reveals the secret to his speed at the F1 2025 Chinese GP?
“I suddenly picked up tyre grip,” Verstappen told Sky Sports F1. “Not balance, that was the same.
“I had more tyre grip where others maybe plateaued a bit more and the lap times were more promising for us at least and also more fun to drive.
“The first half of the race was quite tough but we set out to do our own pace. In the Sprint, I tried to keep up with them but my tyres died.”
It’s rare you will see Max Verstappen stuck for an explanation as to how something affected his race. Known for his passion for motorsport, sharp engineering mind and incredible feel for how a car behaves, he usually has an idea of what’s going on.
But at the F1 2025 Chinese GP he simply found himself unable to figure out why the tyres came back to life for Red Bull, and ultimately lost for words as to how he and his team consistently unlock that lap time.
All the same, he sets the development task for Red Bull to figure out why they came back into contention and became the quickest car on track and his goal is for the next race at the F1 2025 Japanese GP in April.
“It’s difficult to say when you don’t really know where or how to find it,” Verstappen added to Sky Sports F1. “At least that last stint, there’s a bit more of a clearer picture. We will go through the data, learn a bit more and hopefully be more competitive in Suzuka.”
Verstappen added: “The tyres were still in decent shape when I pitted but that is also not how we want to race.
“A lot to analyse but at least the second stint was more promising and I hope we can take some learnings out of that into Japan.”
