Max second on Madring: 'Incredible result'

Published on 13 September 2026 by Florence Cobben

Max Verstappen has come second in the Spanish Grand Prix. In order to claim his sixth podium of the year, Max made a strategic pitstop under VSC which allowed him to pass by Lando Norris and cross the finish line behind Kimi Antonelli.

After the race on the Madring, Max shared some thoughts with the crowd: “Looking at the race pace, I think this is for us a great result. Of course, we know that Lando got unlucky with that VSC. For us, I think today P2 is an incredible result, because you could see how much Lando was catching me. But around here you can’t pass, so I could keep him behind. And for us, of course, P2 is incredible.”

Max also shared what strategy he adopted to fight Lando at the end of the race: “You know, just keep the car in the middle. I think that works quite well around here. And, of course, just try to keep the grip in the tyres, which I think was the hardest part of that stint.”

The last European race of the year takes place at 15 o’clock on the brand new and warm Madring circuit. Madring is making it’s Formula 1 debut with Lando Norris (McLaren) on pole, ahead of Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes), Max Verstappen (Oracle Red Bull Racing) and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari). The drivers on the first row are on mediums, whereas Max and Hamilton have opted for soft tyres. 

The moments after race start are messy. Antonelli strikes out twice, meaning Norris safely claims control of the race lead. Into turn 1, Max maneuvers around the outside of Hamilton and is unceremoniously pushed off of the track. The four-time world champion fails to make the corner and cuts it slightly. In the consecutive corners, he manages to pass Antonelli and claims second place on the race grid.

In the fourth lap, Max’s engineer GianPiero Lambiase advises him to give the position back to Hamilton. Max is annoyed, calling this type of racing: “Mickey Mouse racing.” Despite his misgivings, he lets Hamilton by. With Antonelli sandwiched between the two, it also means Max has to let the Italian pass, and the Dutchman drops to P4. Moments later, Hamilton’s good fortune runs out. He has problems with his brakes, causing him to run straight through the upcoming corners several times. Max takes advantage of the situation to pass the Brit once again, but Hamilton’s problems are only beginning: he continues to drop back through the grid, until eventually the Ferrari-driver is out of the race.

The race’s second retiree is Lance Stroll (Aston Martin). In lap fifteen, Hamilton’s brake problems seize Stroll’s car as well, and with tied hands the Canadian is forced to retire from the race. His car gets stranded in the run-off area, triggering a virtual safety car. Norris, just having passed the pit entrance, can't take advantage, while Max and Russell take the opportunity to change their tyres. Having lapped all the way back, Norris wants to pit as well, but the VSC has already retired. Adding insult to injury, McLaren has a bad pitstop, and Norris drops down to P5. After the first series of pitstops, Leclerc, driving on hard tyres and still going strong, is in the race lead, followed by Antonelli, Max, George Russell, and Norris. Of all the drivers, only Russell switched to the mediums — the other drivers switched to the hard tyre.

Amateur fans and experts alike predicted that passing at the Madring circuit would be hard, and now the race starts to prove the critics true. Passing becomes incidental, and only happens when there is a clear difference in pace between the cars. In the 29th lap, Russell heads in to the pits again for a second stop, and falls back to P5.

Leclerc plods along, and behind him the grid shrinks. Antonelli, with ten laps left to go, is 1.3 seconds behind the race leader. Max is a second behind the Italian, and in turn has Norris a second behind him. After lap 48, Leclerc finally heads into the pits and rejoins the grid in fourth on a set of soft tyres. Max fights to keep Norris behind him. As they near the race’s backmarkers, the fight heats up. Max manages to pull it off: trying to navigate through the slower cars, he shoots off the track, but the stewards find no evidence of wrongdoing and choose not to penalize him. At the falling of the checkered flag, it’s Antonelli first across the line, and he builds his championship lead to 81 points. Max comes home to claim an impressive second place, ahead of reigning champion Lando Norris.

Results Grand Prix Spain: