Max Verstappen and Red Bull Racing have piled the pressure on McLaren and especially Lando Norris. The position for Sunday is ideal. Now Verstappen needs to finish the job and hope that the pressure ultimately becomes too much for Norris and/or McLaren.

On Friday Helmut Marko was still unsure about Max Verstappen’s title chances. The Dutchman didn’t have a strong Friday compared to Lando Norris. The Briton was three tenths faster in the second free practice and seemed to have the upper hand in the long runs as well.

However, Red Bull Racing did what it so often does: improve massively from Friday to Saturday. The team clearly found a window in which the RB21 does work well at the Yas Marina Circuit and if Verstappen gets a sniff of pole position, he will always seize it.

McLaren under heavy pressure after Verstappen’s pole

And with that, both Verstappen and Red Bull are turning up the pressure on McLaren. The ideal scenario for the team from Woking would of course have been to let Norris start the race from pole and cruise to the win. That now likely won’t be the case.

Because for that to happen, Norris will have to get past Verstappen at the start, and that is not usually a specialty of Norris. “Normally, Norris is always nervous when he has to start alongside Verstappen'', Marko told GPblog about the man who on average loses a few too many places at starts.

Behind him, Norris will also have to keep a hungry Piastri at bay. After a disappointing P3 in qualifying, it’s all-or-nothing for Piastri in the first lap. If he wants any chance at the title, he must get past Norris and ideally Verstappen as well. Knowing that otherwise he’ll be forced to play the team game, Piastri will be well aware that he has to be very aggressive on the opening lap.

Oscar Piastri must be aggressive at the start - Photo: RacePictures

He’s not the only one hoping to capitalize on the chaos up front. George Russell also wants to get involved in the fight at the front. The Brit fell just short of making life truly difficult for the McLarens in qualifying, but the Mercedes driver knows that on Sunday opportunities will arise for him to take a podium, or perhaps more.

Just as Russell tried to send a message to Red Bull’s pit wall during qualifying, Russell was already thinking about the race straight after qualifying. Russell knows that Verstappen won’t go flat-out for the win, but may use a trick from the playbook of a former Mercedes driver.

Verstappen could try a repeat of Hamilton in 2016

In 2016 it was Lewis Hamilton who went as slowly as possible around the circuit, hoping someone would pass his teammate Nico Rosberg in P2. That way the German came under pressure after all, because Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen suddenly got very close. An overtake never materialized, however.

Although Verstappen said on Thursday and Saturday that with the current layout of the circuit it will be harder to hold up the whole field, sector three still lends itself to bunching things up a bit. It therefore wouldn’t be wise for Verstappen to go flat-out. A win alone isn’t enough. He needs Norris to finish P4 or lower, otherwise he won’t be champion regardless.

And that will put McLaren and especially Norris under enormous pressure. Norris can’t take risks in battles, knowing that a DNF could be disastrous for his title hopes. Letting everyone through isn’t an option either, because P3 is the minimum result Norris needs if Verstappen wins.

Max Verstappen starts from the best possible position - Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

The wildcard is still Piastri. McLaren has clearly indicated that it will use team orders in Abu Dhabi if it’s clear the other driver no longer has a chance at the title. If Verstappen is in P1, Piastri has no chance at the title. If that’s the case in the final laps, Oscar could well receive the team order to drop back further. A P4 for Norris could suddenly become a P3.

And with that, everyone can prepare for an incredibly exciting Sunday in Abu Dhabi. Verstappen and Red Bull have done everything to be in the best possible position for the race. McLaren is under intense pressure and has not always performed perfectly under it this season. It promises to be anything but boring.

Read also

Russell disrupts F1 title fight: McLaren forced to consider gutting scenario

Mekies lauds key Red Bull turnaround after Verstappen’s pole masterclass

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