Max lays down 'marker' ahead of title showdown – 2025 Abu Dhabi GP qualifying review

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1:37Take five to stay in your car 10-minute oil change. Save up to 30 % on your next oil change to take five. $15 value, valid at participating locations, terms and conditions apply. Max Verstappen, though, on fire again, on pole position again, and our top three contenders for the title are in the top three on the grid. Let's go guys. That was, let's say, yes. Lovely. When pressure is high or when you really need to perform, normally I perform. We're still going to go and plan for how we can win the race. This is how I want to end the season, for sitting on top. Nothing changes from that side. Funny things can happen.

2:17That's where I will end. Welcome everyone to Abu Dhabi for a bonus F1 Nation podcast after a huge qualifying session ahead of Sunday's three-way title showdown between Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and Oscar Piastri. I'm Tom Clarkson and joining me in the Yas Marina paddock is F1 correspondent and presenter Lawrence Barreto. Lawrence, what a session. The three title contenders make up the top three Verstappen from Norris from Piastri what a show we've got tomorrow

2:51Lawrence Barretto:I mean Tom if we could have written it that's exactly what we wanted we wanted the top three up close and personal on the grid tomorrow and they delivered and look fair play to Max he didn't deliver just one pole lap that was good enough for pole he delivered two laps that were good enough for pole he is frighteningly good and he's already laid down a marker I think in Lando and Oskar's mind about the kind of approach he's going to take to tomorrow's race. Well, go on. What do you think that is? I think he's got a few kind of ideas in his head about what he could do. You know, he could back the field up and he could kind of push Lando into Oscar if they retain that formation into the first run.

3:30Lawrence Barretto:He could maybe pull away and maybe let the two McLaren drivers squabble a little bit with George Russell lurking behind. I think what is playing into Max's favour here is that his car is inherently the fastest one by the looks of it, particularly in his hands, which gives him a lot of control i know he needs some other factors to come into play but i think max is clearly reveling in the fact that he's got the tools he needs to try and win it and not just go and win the grand prix try with the championship let's talk about the pace right you say they've got the fastest car i would say after friday practice that wasn't so evident it seems that it yet again for red bull it's come together during quilly itself i would love to sit in a Red Bull engineering meeting on Friday to find out what is in their coffee.

4:17Lawrence Barretto:Because frankly, they always seem to find a way to turn Max complaining about the car, very uncomfortable, you know, often says it's broken, something's not working, to a car that he can then go put it on pole on Saturday afternoon. And it's even harder to do that here because you've only got two, well, one representative practice session and then a less representative session on Saturday morning. And he always seems to find the ability to do that. So, look, I looked at the data yesterday. They were around 0.04 seconds off long run pace, Red Bull from McLaren. So, in theory, maybe it wasn't as bad as it looked on the timesheets.

4:52Lawrence Barretto:And what Max was saying wasn't inherently affecting the performance of the car. But then I think we saw it this morning in practice. He was really fighting the car, complaining about it. And then he was only a tenth of a second off the leading time in practice. So, I think it's all relative when Max complains about the car. Because I think he's just pushing for absolute perfection. So actually, to your point, Tom, I don't think the car was actually as bad as we maybe thought it was yesterday. How much of this is mind games in that, you know, Max has been here before. He's got those four titles in the bag.

5:23He's been in that title showdown situation here in 2021. Is he trying to sort of give McLaren a full sense of security? Oh, well, look, Red Bull are nowhere in practice. So might they make different choices? Is he trying to get into the heads of the drivers? I mean, he did say, didn't he, in the press conference there that, you know, he's all in tomorrow.

5:43Lawrence Barretto:But he's got to be all in. And of course, there's got to be mind games because Max has been there and he's done it before. And that is the one great advantage he's got over Lando and Oscar who haven't been there and done that in Formula One fighting for a championship. And I think he's reveling in it. I think Max is really reveling in this. And when we chatted last year, Tom, after he won that title in Vegas, I think he's reveling in the fact that it doesn't matter anymore now. he just wants to go out and win as much as possible and if that means titles that's great but if it doesn't doesn't matter because i've got four trophies sat you know on my mantelpiece back home and i think that is leveling up max to a frighteningly good level to the point where i think at some point soon we're going to be talking about him as the greatest of our generation and i think for lando and oscar to then go up against that kind of character despite the fact that mclaren have been the class leader this year despite the fact that they've had a near two horse fight for the title and i remember writing that in features many a time this year he found a way to kind of get into their heads and i think the mind game started right here on this sofa with you tom on thursday with you know max you know he came in to the waiting room just outside the press conference and he sat on the opposite side of the sofa to oscar and lando then he came in here and he he was very chatty and you know they were almost like three mates hanging out not three guys who want to beat each other for the greatest prize of motorsport.

7:04Lawrence Barretto:So I think everything he does from the team radio that he knows that people are listening to, to the way that he carries himself into the paddock, to the way he talks to us in the TV pen and you in the press conference, it's all a mind game because he's looking for every single edge. And boy, does he need it this year to haul himself into the title fight. The last 10 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix's have been won from pole position. So, you know, he is in pole position to get the job done. Let's talk about the two McLaren guys, right? Lando said he was very disappointed not to be on pole. Was it a surprise to you that he wasn't?

7:38Lawrence Barretto:I don't think it was a surprise given how good Max looked this morning. I think that, I think for Lando, at least what he was saying in the TV pen, he conceded that Max was just a bit too quick for him and for the McLaren team this weekend. So actually, I think he was pretty happy with what he was able to do, which is to get on the front row like a comfort blanket. because obviously he's just got to finish on the podium this weekend, wherever Oscar and Max finish this weekend. So I think that he was happy with it. I think he accepted that pole probably wasn't on the cards. And we saw through quality that he kind of built up, like I think he was a bit conservative maybe in Q1, didn't quite get everything together, slowly kind of built up through Q2 and then into Q3, you know, did the best that he could, which was to beat his own teammate at that point and put himself in next to Max and just kind of see whether or not he can have a bit of control heading into turn one.

8:28Would you rather be starting P2, Lando, or P3 where Oscar is?

8:33Lawrence Barretto:Well, I'm risk-averse, Tom, so I think if I was Lando, I'd prefer to be one spot further back in P3 because I think I'd rather Max and Oscar go figure it out into Turn 1. We obviously saw Oscar and Max come together last year at Turn 1. And look, he doesn't need to take risk. I know he's saying that he wants to go out and win, and to be fair to him, that has been his approach since he had that mechanical failure in Sandvall and been chipping away at Oscar's lead. but I think I just want to be realistic about it. He's just got to finish P3. Don't get caught up in mayhem potentially up front. We know Oscar's got to finish in the top two to have any chance of claiming the title.

9:09Are we going to see the most aggressive race ever from Oscar Piastri?

9:13Lawrence Barretto:I think we're going to see a pretty aggressive one because frankly, what else has he got to lose? Because I think Oscar's in a good spot in P3. I think he can really go and attack into turn two probably knowing that Lando won't want to over attack turn one. So I think it's really important for him to finish the season on a high after that end of season slump. He kind of showed what he's capable of, as he has done all year in Qatar. I think he really wants to finish strongly here. And he will also know that Max is going to try and do anything he can to win. So he's going to have to do something more than that because he's got that four point deficit to Max as well.

9:50Lawrence Barretto:and in between that he knows that Lando is the one who's protecting the lead. So yeah, I think we're going to see, I want to see a different side to Oscar tomorrow in a really positive way and I think that's going to show us the evolution of that character going forward.

10:05If there's one thing Formula One proves, it's that progress comes from people who are willing to push the limits and history is full of them. The inventors, engineers, leaders and outsiders who change the game through bold ideas, nerve, and moments of brilliance. That's what the podcast Short History Of is all about. Each vividly immersive episode delves into one remarkable subject from world history, from revolutionary people and world-changing inventions, to defining events that still shape our lives today. So if you love innovation, ambition, and stories about what happens when people go all in, Give Short History Of a listen.

10:50Search for Short History Of wherever you get your podcasts.

11:05Fernando Alonso was asked in the pen, any advice you'd give the titled protagonist? And he said, sleep well tonight. Easier said than done, right? when you're you know the highest pressure situation you can have as a racing driver i'm not sure i

11:19Lawrence Barretto:would sleep very well if i was any of those three because frankly this is what you you build your whole year around this moment and having this opportunity and um i'm excited as a reporter talking about it i've had this like butterfly feeling in my tummy all weekend because i'm excited about the prospect of this battle they're in it they're in the middle of it so i understand what fernando's saying a good sleep is super important because it will make all your decision making better it will make the way you approach that morning but it will affect the way you carry yourself on the grid when your rivals are looking it's it's super important i think there's an argument for lando to let oscar go and have a crack at max actually because you know as long as he's on the podium i think he can rely on oscar letting him through if he needs to at some point in the race if oscar can't win the race i think that we will see those team orders at mclaren so why not let oscar just go and you know take the fight to max verstappen perhaps in a way that lando feels he can't i mean that makes a lot of sense to be honest but i don't know whether or not lando feels like he needs to for pride purposes stay ahead that he needs to maybe control that element because okay the title is on the line this weekend and in this race and it's important for that but obviously there is this inter-team battle between lando and oscar for superiority there and i think every decision matters and i think a part of the rhetoric around lando saying he wants to win is he wants to assert his authority at the team like any driver wants to when they go to when they go to a new team or they're up against a very tough teammate so i think for lando he'll want to keep oscar behind because of that whether or not he will choose to do that in the race tomorrow i don't know i hadn't thought of that the the long-term effects of which McLaren driver if it's a McLaren driver that wins the title how that will affect the dynamic within the team does the pendulum you know they're keeping it equal all year will the the pendulum sway in one direction and stay there throughout 26 whoever wins the title exactly that and I think no one knows that but you may as well try and put yourself in the best possible position and I think in these kind of situations it's not the conscious reaction it's the subconscious reaction and i think that a team who sees a driver win subconsciously just almost builds themselves around that driver and look i'm not saying that that means they're favoring one driver the other i'm just saying that it's just natural human nature you follow a champion don't you we saw the way that michael schumacher built up ferrari that lewis did at mercedes people follow the driver that is the guy who goes out there and gets the job done at the final at the final hurdle so i think it is it's a fascinating dynamic to tomorrow's race so those are the title protagonists you've got lando norris 12 points ahead of max verstappen and 16 ahead of his teammate oscar piastri right is anyone else gonna meddle with our championship fight does george russell have the race pace from p4 to just cause a bit of chaos a bit of jeopardy equally ferrari was so strong at this race last year can charlaclair from p5 cause a bit of jeopardy i think if you'd asked anyone ahead of this weekend who the two most likely to do that were I think they would have said George and and Charles so I think the fact that they are P4 and P5 on the grid kind of syncs up to that I think that George will feel like he can get in the mix I think he's got that cheeky smile about him you know that he knows that you know up front anything can happen and he's there to take advantage and we've seen multiple times this year he's been able to do that the Mercedes is generally quicker in race trim as well and I think there'll be so many factors in tomorrow's race I think a lot of what this tomorrow's race will be defined on is not actually who's got the fastest car it's how you manage a race and so actually if for example Max does back the two McLarens up into George George is in prime spot to go I'm not in a championship fight and I want to finish this year on a high so I want to do that and Charles Leclerc said he's going to take massive risk tomorrow to to end the year on the podium for ferrari so those two guys actually probably won a slower race you know like you get in the 10 000 meters at the the athletics when you do a really slow race you can have a sprint finish i think that might actually play to to georgian and charles advantage which is what max will know of course he'll know that he'll almost pincer the two mclarens in between so i think helpfully for max merck and ferrari They've got the pace to at least be in the mix.

15:52Lawrence Barretto:It's not that they're so far back that Max would have to be driving around at 20 miles an hour. I think they're really in the mix to fight for a podium tomorrow. And that means they're in the mix to fight amongst the McLaren. You're giving me 2016 vibes, of course. When Lewis Hamilton backed up teammate Rosberg into the field, hoping that someone would overtake him and cause a bit of chaos. Interestingly, Max was asked about that after qualifying. and he said the layout of course is different here at yas marina now compared to 2016 one of the the second chicane if you like has been replaced by that really fast left-hander at turn nine and so he said it will actually be harder to back the field up in the way that lewis did back in 16 but he's got to try it i feel we're going to see a bit of that so it's going to be a hugely exciting race who is going to be the 2025 world champion what's your feeling I need to sit on the fence, surely, Tom.

16:51Lawrence Barretto:I think at the moment, just pragmatically, Lando is in the box seat still because even though he's been beaten by Max today, he's got the points lead. He can even lose a position to his teammate, Oscar, and still win the championship, whereas Oscar and Max have to make something happen. So I still feel like he has got the best seat from that perspective. But there are other things I've just thought of. You know, reliability. there are all manner of things that can happen tomorrow so while I do think he is still favourite it's too hard to say that he's going to win I think it's not clear cut is it on paper he should he was asked in the press conference would you take P2 tomorrow where you finished on the grid he said yeah but these things are never that simple equally Oscar Piastri was asked are you going to get your popcorn out and watch these two through turn one and he said, I don't think it's going to happen at turn one.

17:45I think he'll be getting the popcorn out later on in the race. Maybe he was suggesting about, you know, being backed up. Max is going to back the field up. Who knows? It's all going to play out over 58 laps tomorrow. Lawrence, thank you so much for your time. Not long to wait now.

18:01Lawrence Barretto:Thank you. I'm not sure I'm going to sleep very well, Tom, after that because I am pumped for tomorrow's race. Great stuff. Well, it is almost time. The season finale is upon us. and on Sunday night we will crown that 2025 world champion. Who will it be? Tune in to find out. And you can still listen to our full preview show with Julian Palmer and James Hinchcliffe. That's just below this episode on the F1 Nation feed. And in selected countries you can watch the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on F1 TV and keep across all the action at F1.com, the F1 app, and at F1 on social media. We will of course be back again on Monday with our reaction to all of the action in our race review.

18:39make sure you follow F1 Nation on your podcast app to hear that show as soon as it's available. Thank you very much for listening and enjoy the finale. F1 Nation is produced by Formula One and Audioboom Studios.

19:11If there's one thing Formula One proves, it's that progress comes from people who are willing to push the limits. And history is full of them. The inventors, engineers, leaders and outsiders who change the game through bold ideas, nerve and moments of brilliance. That's what the podcast Short History Of is all about. Each vividly immersive episode delves into one remarkable subject from world history From revolutionary people and world-changing inventions To defining events that still shape our lives today So if you love innovation, ambition and stories about what happens when people go all in Give Short History Of a listen Search for Short History Of wherever you get your podcasts

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