“We’ll go aggressive”: Every radio message from Verstappen’s pit-to-podium masterclass

Max Verstappen made Interlagos his personal playground again as he swept to an unlikely podium finish after starting in the pits.

Red Bull faced a tricky tactical call as the final laps ticked down. Verstappen found himself in the lead on a fading set of medium compound tyres.

He admitted he was unsure whether to eke them out until the end of the race or pit for a fresh set of softs. Eventually Red Bull took the plunge: “we’ll go aggressive” said race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase as they brought Verstappen in.

The team hoped that would give him a chance to take second place. He got close, but Andrea Kimi Antonelli had just enough in reserve to deny him second place.

Verstappen’s Brazilian Grand Prix radio messages

“Check my car, a lot of debris went flying”
“I don’t think a hard tyre is good”
“That’s Russell ahead now”
“Amazingly you are only 18 seconds to the leader”
“We’ll go aggressive”
“One more opportunity into turn one”
“Don’t just sit there and be happy with second”

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“Check my car, a lot of debris went flying”

When Verstappen’s team mate Yuki Tsunoda started the sprint race from the pit lane 24 hours earlier he had to be waved away by a flag marshal as the exit lights weren’t working. They were fixed in time for Sunday, so once the 18 cars which lined up on the grid passed through turn one, Verstappen and fellow pit lane starter Esteban Ocon were released.

As the field spread out ahead of them, Verstappen caught sight of the tail-enders just in time to spy Gabriel Bortoleto spinning into a barrier. He immediately notified Lambiase that the race was likely to be neutralised.

As the first lap ended, Lewis Hamilton touched Franco Colapinto’s car ahead and Verstappen ran through some of the resulting debris. When the race restarted Verstappen quickly picked off two cars at the first corner but then found he couldn’t gain on Nico Hulkenberg’s Sauber.

“I don’t think a hard tyre is good”

Verstappen reported poor grip from his tyres and Red Bull saw data which indicated a possible cause. While the Safety Car was deployed in reaction to Charles Leclerc’s retirement, they summoned Verstappen in to swap his tyres, suspecting a puncture.

The driver was not sorry to see the back of the hard tyres he started the race on, and resumed with a fresh set of medium rubber. His radio went quiet for three consecutive laps as he enjoyed clear air and pumped in lap times far quicker than the leaders were managing.

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“That’s Russell ahead now”

Verstappen was spared having to overtake Oliver Bearman, Carlos Sainz Jnr, Pierre Gasly and the Racing Bulls drivers as they pitted in front of him. Once he cleared Alexander Albon’s Williams he had a run at the leading drivers.

Now back in clear air, Verstappen wasn’t able to continue gaining on Norris, but had avoided falling out of pit stop range of the race leader. When Norris pitted, he came out behind Verstappen, but Lambiase urged his driver not to get drawn into a fight with him, and instead avoid losing too much time as the McLaren came past on fresher tyres.

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“Amazingly you are only 18 seconds to the leader”

Verstappen’s second stint was his longest of the race, at 27 laps. Red Bull chose not to extend it any longer as he complained about a lack of grip.

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“We’ll go aggressive”

With 17 laps to go, Verstappen’s latest set of mediums were 20 laps old. With Norris and Antonelli gaining, he was unsure whether he wanted to eke them out to the end.

Those around him who had reached Q3 did not have any fresh sets of soft tyres left, but Verstappen’s early exit from qualifying meant he did. Red Bull opted to take advantage, putting one of the new sets on for a final stint.

As Verstappen returned to the track in fourth place and began taking up to a second per lap out of the two Mercedes drivers immediately ahead of him, Lambiase told him “P2 is on here, Max, assuming you can control the deg.”

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“One more opportunity into turn one”

While Verstappen got past Russell with little difficulty, by the time he caught Antonelli his soft tyres were beginning to fade. He got within DRS range of the second-placed Mercedes for several laps, but narrowly fell short of passing him.

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“Don’t just sit there and be happy with second”

As Verstappen took the chequered flag, Lambiase apologised for the set-up choice which had compromised his Saturday so badly. But Verstappen was pleased the team had opted for an attacking strategy at the end of the race. Team principal Laurent Mekies came on the radio to offer his congratulations.

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