Max Verstappen: Isack Hadjar did a really good job giving me a tow during Spa Qualifying

Verstappen qualified his Red Bull in P2 behind Kimi Antonelli in 1:44.678, admitting he could otherwise have fallen as low as sixth. 

Hadjar sacrificed his own final Q3 attempt to position himself ahead of Verstappen through Spa-Francorchamps’ crucial closing sector. With the Frenchman already facing a back-of-grid start, Red Bull turned his penalty into a tactical opportunity.

Verstappen said: "It was definitely helping me; otherwise I would not be standing here. Otherwise I think I would be like P6, or something. So, I think Isack today, knowing that he has to start at the back of the grid, he did a really good job giving me a tow in the final sector, and that’s why we’re standing right here.

“For sure, tomorrow I think I’ll be looking in my mirrors at the people around me, but at least today we had a really good result. I think the car has been quite decent the whole weekend, not on the level, maybe, that Kimi was doing. But we’re happy to be on the front row with how we executed as a team.”

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies confirmed the tow strategy had been prepared early in the weekend. He praised Hadjar and the team for executing a difficult plan while managing the car’s energy deployment around Spa.

Verstappen later revealed the slipstream was worth approximately three tenths, enough to transform Red Bull’s qualifying outcome. The Dutchman said the car remained short of straight-line speed, but its balance and operating window were encouraging throughout the weekend.

He explained: “I think we really executed well as a team today, and we're happy to be starting on the front row. The whole weekend has been positive: the car is in a good window, and the balance is decent as well.

“We have just been lacking a bit of straight-line speed compared to the other teams, but we have been able to maximise the potential of the car. Of course, Isack helped me out in Q3 with the tow in the final sector.

“A big thank you to him, as it is one of the main reasons why I'm sitting here in P2 for tomorrow's race. We gained around three tenths of lap time, so without it we likely would have qualified around P6, given how close the gap to the others was.”

Hadjar entered Q3 knowing he would start from the rear after taking new power unit components. He set no representative time in the final session, finishing tenth on the qualifying classification after completing his assignment.

Hadjar said: “Our mission was clear today, and we executed it, so we can be happy with the day's work. I knew I had to get into Q3, and we managed that quite comfortably despite having limited one-lap pace as the car was set up for the race.

“Max might have been up there, but I was happy to do the job for him and the team. It’s a little difficult to give a tow with these regulations, not knowing how the engine would behave as you have to manage the deployment differently, but we timed it well.”

Mekies said in the team report: “We knew coming here that we would have a penalty with Isack and that he would be starting from the back of the grid, so, from early in the weekend, the plan was to make the most out of this situation and to get Isack to also help Max throughout qualifying with slipstream.

“He and the team executed this to perfection, and that has certainly helped get Max on the front row. We have been a long way off the straight-line performance Mercedes has shown this weekend, and the tow certainly helped reduce that gap.”

Verstappen expects Sunday’s race to become more defensive, with several fast cars starting close behind him. Tyre management and long-run performance will be decisive as Red Bull attempts to remain in podium contention.

He concluded: “It’s always tough around here with the tyres and the long runs. I’ll just do my best and see if we can hang in there or not.”

Hadjar, meanwhile, will attempt to recover from the back and return to the points. Red Bull’s qualifying plan worked exactly as intended, but the race will test whether Verstappen can convert tactical execution into a podium.