Verstappen admits deliberately holding back after new Red Bull issue in Monza qualifying

Four-time world champion Max Verstappen set only the fifth-fastest time in qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza, finishing less than three tenths of a second behind surprise pole-sitter Pierre Gasly. Afterwards, the Dutchman said he had noticed a problem from the very start of the session.

Problem hit from the first lap

"I think FP3 was actually quite decent for us, we made a really good step overnight, but unfortunately going into qualifying on my first lap I immediately picked up a problem on the rear axle, which we've had a lot this season," Verstappen said, as reported by Formula1.com. He explained that the issue appears at different points of a race weekend, and this time it struck during qualifying, making the car bounce more over kerbs and bumps and costing performance on a track where the field is extremely close. Verstappen also had no tow from another car on his final Q3 attempt. Asked whether a podium was possible, he said: "If we can fix it then yes, I think the car will be in a better window. Is that enough for a podium? I don't know. We'd like to race with a car that is 100%."

Teammate Liam Lawson, still filling in for injured Isack Hadjar, failed to reach Q3, setting only the 13th-fastest time, and will start from the back of the grid after a power unit change. Lawson said his role had been to give Verstappen a tow in Q3, but the plan fell through after he was blocked at the first chicane by McLaren's Oscar Piastri, who received a grid penalty for the incident.

Difficult season, changed approach to risk

Earlier in the weekend, Verstappen had warned the Italian Grand Prix could be "painful," saying the current hybrid-era cars are inefficient on Monza's long, high-speed straights, which demand more power than any other circuit. "It's going to be really painful... I have prepared myself mentally for it," he said on Thursday, according to RFI, adding that drivers this year must carefully manage energy usage rather than push flat-out every lap. Verstappen won at Monza last year with the fastest lap in Formula 1 history, but this season he sits sixth in the standings with 112 points, 130 behind championship leader Kimi Antonelli.

In a separate interview with RacingNews365, Verstappen made a striking admission: he has deliberately eased off on multiple occasions this season. "I've had it a few times this year where I deliberately held back, yes... We've had some issues this season. When you're racing for seventh place, I'm obviously not going to drive like [with a knife to the throat] when something might go wrong," he said. He drew a distinction between genuinely dangerous faults, such as a sudden loss of rear-wing downforce, and issues like the car's bouncing, which he said only costs lap time without being dangerous.