Red Bull driver Max Verstappen shared the intense emotions he experienced from Sunday’s delayed qualifying session to his triumphant victory at Sao Paulo Grand Prix after starting on 17. The three-time world champion admitted his temper was high after qualifying, leading him to “almost try to destroy” the Red Bull garage.

Coming from two controversial races in Austin and Mexico that were part of an intense tripleheader that ended in Brazil, Verstappen was eager to defend his lead in the drivers’ standings against Lando Norris. However, two 10-second penalties at the Mexico Grand Prix were the biggest of his setbacks, allowing Norris to close the points gap.

The race weekend at Interlagos was also fraught with difficulties for the Dutchman, starting with a 5-place engine penalty for using a sixth internal combustion engine. Additionally, an untimely red flag in Q2 led to Verstappen securing 12th place, dropping him to 17th with the penalty. Verstappen appeared furious after the session, questioning the delay behind the red flag. However, he was not deterred by the enormous challenge, wet and dangerous track conditions and near-zero visibility. The Red Bull driver surged through the field, eventually taking the lead and crossing the finish line first.

The dynamics of the race changed dramatically when Norris and race leader George Russell stopped for fresh tires after more than 20 laps on intermediate tires. Their timing, however, overlapped with the end of a safety car period, costing them crucial positions and allowing both Alpine cars to move ahead, with Verstappen in between. Shortly after, a red flag was raised by a serious accident involving Williams driver Franco Colapinto, putting Verstappen directly behind race leader Esteban Ocon. Verstappen quickly passed Ocon, ultimately finishing with a lead of over 19 seconds at the checkered flag. Speaking about the range of emotions he experienced from qualifying to race victory, Verstappen said:

“I don’t even know where to start, because my emotions today went from almost trying to destroy the garage to winning the race.

“Starting 17th, I knew we could have a good race, but in qualifying I think it was pretty clear that there was only one line you could follow, so I knew that overtaking was going to be quite difficult.”

Speaking about the strong start that helped him take crucial positions in the opening laps and the good decisions made by Red Bull during the race, Verstappen added:

“We got off to a good start, it’s already helped.

“We had a good first round.

“From there we just picked a few drivers here and there, and then I got a little bit stuck behind Yuki (Tsunoda’s) train, I think.

“We stayed calm, the race was still very long and we made the right decisions – some stopped, the rain was coming, we stayed away, which was very sketchy.

“And then Esteban (Ocon) in front of me was flying, about four seconds per lap faster. I was like, ‘I’m just happy to keep the car on the track.’

“At one point it was just red, we needed a red flag. It was just undriveable.

“Even with extreme tires it wouldn’t have been possible because of the slope of the track here – it fills up very quickly and it almost felt like I was driving a boat… a jet ski… .I definitely have more speed on a jet ski.”