Red Bull Racing team principal Laurent Mekies addressed the Austrian team’s decision to bring Max Verstappen in for an additional pit stop while the Dutch driver was leading on Lap 54 of the Brazilian Grand Prix, holding a 6.5-second advantage over McLaren’s Lando Norris.
According to Mekies, Verstappen had no realistic chance of winning the race. He emphasized that it is impossible to know what the outcome might have been.
The call was made, and I think it gave us a chance to have a very strong go at the podium. Ultimately we got it; maybe one lap more and you would have gotten P2. I don't think there was any way you would have kept P1 if you just look at the tyre deg and where you were.
Lando Norris of McLaren ultimately won the race. Second place went to Mercedes driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli, and third place was claimed by four-time world champion and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen.
In the current Drivers’ Championship standings, the Dutchman sits third, 49 points behind the leader, McLaren’s Lando Norris.
Three more Grand Prix races remain in the 2025 Formula 1 season.
