Max Verstappen Would Have Been Told to Surrender Second Place to Hadjar at São Paulo Grand Prix, Mekies Confirms

Max Verstappen was once again at his best in Brazil, with the Dutch driver delivering yet another back-to-front charge after taking a grid penalty for a power unit change. And while the No. 3 driver ultimately finished the race in P2, chances are that he would have been P3, given Red Bull was considering handing second place to Isack Hadjar.

Speaking after the São Paulo GP, team principal Laurent Mekies detailed that there was a discussion within the team to ask their drivers to switch towards the end of the race, had they been closer together.

“I think we would have done it. If the cars had stayed close together, we would have done it because Isack had a very strong pace and he stayed with Max, as you have seen, after the swap.”

The possibility of the swap came from the fact that Hadjar was given team orders to make way for Verstappen on Lap 38 of the race. The Dutch driver had come charging after starting from P21, and Red Bull hoped to see him chase down the race leader, Lando Norris.

But while Norris kept building his lead, Hadjar remained within a second of his teammate, compelling Red Bull to consider handing him back the position. However, a late rain shower ended up bringing enough distance between the cars that justifying the swap wasn’t possible. Thus, each driver ended up keeping their position.

Did Max Verstappen Benefit Because He Is the Lead Driver at Red Bull?

There is no denying the fact that Verstappen brings his absolute best in São Paulo and is a master of wet conditions at Interlagos. His charge from P21 gave another example of just how good the Dutch driver is at the track, but whether a P2 was a justified result for the drive remains a question unanswered.

Much of it has to do with the fact that Hadjar had similar pace for most of the race, and it was team orders that held back his charge. Even when the order came to let Verstappen pass, the Dutch driver wasn’t necessarily quicker than his French teammate. It is just that the latter had made a mistake while driving that had brought them closer.

Verstappen was heard going on the radio, asking race engineer Tom Hart, “So?” basically waiting for team orders to come into play. Hart quickly replied that Hadjar had been asked to step aside.

Once the swap was done, the No. 6 driver remained in the rear-view mirror of his teammate and even lapped within the overtake window. He asked his team whether they would reverse the swap if it didn’t get them close to Norris, but they were non-committal on the subject. Thus, the legitimacy of Mekies’ post-race comments has an air of uncertainty around them.

Max Verstappen Has Dismissed Johnny Herbert’s Claims

Given everything that was put on display in São Paulo, it is clear that every time a Red Bull driver is good enough to challenge Verstappen, chances are that they won’t be allowed to. The fact highlights that Verstappen holds a considerable say in the garage, and might also hold power over who comes and who goes.

When he and Liam Lawson butted heads against each other in Mexico City and in the aftermath of it all, Johnny Herbert, who also had run-ins with the Dutchman during his time as an F1 steward, said the four-time world champion was out of line by threatening Lawson’s F1 future.

But when asked about the comments in Brazil, Verstappen paid little heed to the words of Herbert as he said,

“Do I understand why he says that? I don’t know. I don’t really care at all. What does that matter to me?”

Thus, Verstappen brushed off any comments from the former F1 steward, as he later revealed that he and Lawson had spoken in private and had worked things out between them.

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