Max Verstappen defended the approach to his final Q3 run after a crash for Charles Leclerc denied him a chance at pole in Monaco.
The Dutchman was unsurprisingly furious over the radio after his final run of qualifying, which was on course to be faster, was cut short by the Ferrari driver finding the wall at the Swimming Pool chicane.
Verstappen had calmed down a bit when he was back in parc ferme, but still rued missing out on one of the most crucial pole positions of the Formula 1 season due to the polesitter’s crash.
“It was unfortunate of course with the red flag because I felt really comfortable in qualifying, just building up to it,” he told Paul di Resta.
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“Nobody was really putting a lap time in on the first lap, and that’s how we basically planned it out,” he explained. “To do two laps, and then your third lap is the fastest.
“It was all going really well, but of course the red flag ruined the chance for pole. That was definitely on because I made a mistake in Turn 10 the lap before and I just had more grip.”
Given the increased potential for accidents on the Monte Carlo street circuit, Verstappen was asked if the strategy of “building up” to his final flying lap was perhaps a little naive.
“Of course it’s easy to have a red flag, but you don’t expect it,” he replied. “Of course you always plan around the best possible strategy and it was working out well. It’s just a shame about the red flag.
“Nevertheless I think so far [it’s been] a very good weekend,” he continued. “Everyone back at the factory and here at the track did an amazing job to basically give me the car I wanted because we were quite far out on Thursday, which I didn’t expect.
“I really thought that from the start, just with the characteristic of our car throughout the whole year, that it should be quite good around here. Luckily we found it.”
Verstappen may still have a chance to start at the front if Ferrari changes Leclerc’s gearbox, but regardless Max is certainly in a better place than championship rival Lewis Hamilton, who starts seventh.