Verstappen: "I didn't get the same out of it as in Q2, so I had to go deep in Q3"

Max Verstappen was somewhat surprised by his own result in the qualifying at the Circuit of the Americas. He can start the United States Grand Prix from pole position, after a session that had its ups and downs.

"It was a bit up and down," said the Dutchman during the press conference after qualifying. "Just getting to the limit of the car felt a little bit difficult for me this whole weekend so far, to try and get that last bit out of it. Even in qualifying I had to work up to it. Then, on the mediums I actually felt really good."

Better feeling on mediums for Verstappen

On the mediums, it went better for him than on the softs. "I think in Q2 that was a good lap," Verstappen continued. "It seemed like they suited me a bit more in terms of driving. The first run in Q3 again wasn’t perfect. I just couldn’t really get the same out of it in terms of feeling compared to Q2. So then I had to dig deep in Q3."

He says he didn't expect there to be enough in it for pole position, making the satisfaction after qualifying even greater. "To be on pole is great, especially on a weekend so far, like I said, where it was a bit more difficult to find that last bit," said the Red Bull driver.