P1racenews AI automatic summary:
Red Bull’s decision to put Max Verstappen on the unfancied hard tyre late on in the Spanish Grand Prix aged very badly very quickly – but what was the original logic?
Max Verstappen’s Spanish Grand Prix was marred by a late-race incident with George Russell, but it was not the defining moment of his afternoon. The controversy stemmed from a tire call made by Red Bull, leading to a spiral of events. The safety car intervention on lap 55 for Kimi Antonelli’s car recovery disrupted strategies in a race where thermal degradation was crucial. Verstappen, in a battle for third, requested fresh tires but was surprised to receive hard compounds. The hard tire was deemed unusable due to poor grip and balance issues, with drivers avoiding it throughout the weekend. Red Bull’s aggressive strategy left Verstappen with no choice but to use the hard tires, impacting his race performance.
