On Saturday he rode in the fastest round from Formula 1 history to pole position, on Sunday he rode in the fastest F1 race ever to the victory. If there was one driver who earned it on Sunday in Monza to stand on top of the podium for a vast crowd of Ferrari fans, it was Max Verstappen.
At the Grand Prix of Italy, Verstappen did for the first time in a long time what the F1 audience was used to from him: totally dominated. Only after a small skirmish in the first round did he lose the lead to Lando Norris, but Verstappen quickly recaptured the leading position. Then he ran away with force majeure. He won his third race of the season for Norris and his McLaren teammate Oscar Piastri.
But does his triumph also mean that Verstappen – who is virtually hopeless for the world title – can now participate in the victory every weekend? Probably not. McLaren, more than the strongest team in 2025, could not benefit from his trump cards as usual this time.
The main reason: Monza is a very unique circuit. On the spectrum of slow and fast jobs, the Italian course is completely on the last side: it is the fastest destination on the F1 calendar. 75 percent of the 5.7 kilometer long round the drivers follow the Volvas; There are only six turns for which they have to brake.
Top speed up to 370 km/hour
Due to the high -speed character of Monza, adjusting the cars is relatively simple. As small and flat as possible wings, for as little air resistance as possible on the long straight pieces. The fact that the car is a bit more difficult to control in the turns does not outweigh top speeds of up to 370 kilometers per hour.
That is a pity for McLaren. Because smaller wings also provide less downward pressure (downforce) on. And in the correct generation of large quantities of downforce, the McLaren is normally the best – but in Monza the British team was relatively little concerned with that.
The low importance of aerodynamics in Monza is leveling the playing field, and Verstappen was able to take advantage of that. Even just before the qualification, against the advice of his team, he had an even smaller rear wing mounted on his Red Bull. The right choice, it turned out: the 1.18.792 with which he took pole position was with an average speed of 264.682 kilometers per hour the fastest round ever driven by a Formula 1 car.
Even with such a record round, Verstappen would usually not have been safe a day later in the race for Norris and Piaastri, who often gains a lot of time because their McLaren enables them to greatly limit the tire wear.
New asphalt layer
But this time also fell away for the McLarens. Monza was equipped with a new asphalt layer last year, which after a year of racing cars had been passed over it, became quite smoother. As a result, Tire wear was a problem for anyone on Sunday, so McLaren Verstappen could not take it back on that either.
Verstappens victory (with a record average of 250.706 kilometers per hour) is also a consequence of the progress he made with his team. All too often, his RB21 this year was barely managing during the training sessions on Friday, after which the entire adjustment had to be turned over – not always with success.
This Friday, however, the car immediately felt good. Verstappen “couldn’t remember” when he last immediately had such a good click with his Red Bull, he said Saturday against motorsport. This is also because the driver and his team understand the car better. “I think we now know better how to adjust the car,” said Verstappen. “As a result, we can make small adjustments after each session, instead of having to change everything.”
If that progress is permanent, Verstappen could get the stage more often. Give the four -time world champion a somewhat stable car, and with his deep reservoir of talent and experience he will get everything out of it. Whether it will be enough to beat the McLarens when they can fully use their technical benefits – that is only doubtful.