Verstappen voices frustration: 'You’re better off leaving it at home'

At last weekend’s Baku GP, Pirelli decided to bring the three softest compounds in its range, including the C6 tire—a tire that many chose to avoid in favor of qualifying on the mediums.

Speaking about the tires after qualifying, the Dutchman had a few remarks for the Italian manufacturer regarding that particular tire: “It was just a poor tire. I think I want to have a chat with Pirelli sometime about just leaving that tire at home. It makes things very difficult for an entire weekend because you have no reference points at all.”

Verstappen pointed out that on several circuits this year, the C6 hasn’t worked, or at least hasn’t provided the usual compound advantage that normally comes from moving from a medium to a soft tire.

Verstappen added that he would like to see a different approach from Pirelli to make the race more appealing. “It’s better to just force a two-stop race rather than bring a tire that isn’t actually better.”

He finally suggested that a race requiring the use of all tire compounds could be an option: “Yes, maybe. That’s better than using a tire they claim is faster but isn’t.”

With two dominant victories at Monza and Baku over the past two weekends, the Dutchman has reopened a championship that had seemed all but secured by the two McLaren drivers.

Verstappen now sits 69 points behind Oscar Piastri and 44 behind Lando Norris, with seven Grands Prix and three sprint races still to go.

While the gap remains significant, Andrea Stella believes the Dutchman has once again become a real threat for the title.

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