MONDAY MORNING DEBRIEF: Exactly how did Verstappen negate a brake problem to rise from P6 and take the win?

/MMD-USA-2023.webp)
Everyone was assuming that Max Verstappen would win the United States Grand Prix despite starting only P6. The lap he’d had deleted for track limits in qualifying would have been pole, after all. And he’d totally blitzed Saturday’s Sprint event from pole, pulling out 9s on Lewis Hamilton’s upgraded Mercedes in just 19 laps.
But Verstappen himself wasn’t so sure, and knew he had a very tough job ahead of him. To get past five cars while keeping the delicate tyres in shape on a track which induces super-high rear temperatures would be a challenge. Furthermore, around the Circuit of The Americas the RB19 wasn’t as quick as usual.
Next Up
Related Articles
Unlocked10 quiz questions about Fernando Alonso’s home Grands Prix
BettingHow Antonelli became Mercedes’ betting market leader
UnlockedHow the Monaco podium was decided by less than 0.5kph
Vasseur gives verdict after mixed Monaco GP for Ferrari
Williams FP1 outings for Browning in Barcelona and Austria
All the key moments from the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix
