Max Verstappen takes savage dig at rivals as he secures pole position for the F1 Japanese GP

Max Verstappen has claimed that he knows his rivals make more mistakes than him, and if he is close enough, he'll always make the difference. The dig at rivals comes in the aftermath of a stunning pole position by the Red Bull driver, where he beat both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

The Dutch driver has struggled with the car throughout the race weekend, and at no point has he looked comfortable in it. Even on Friday, while he was talking to the media, the driver said that he was struggling with confidence from the car. On Friday, it did appear that Red Bull was the fourth fastest car behind the top 3.

As the weekend progressed, however, that view started to change. In FP3, Max Verstappen was closer to the top, and in qualifying, the driver continued to chip at the gap. On the final lap, the Dutch driver nailed the second sector and ended up quicker than the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.

This was Max Verstappen's first pole since the F1 Austrian GP 2024, and there was an element of the driver making the difference and his rivals making tiny mistakes throughout their fastest laps. Talking to the Telegraph, the Dutch driver touched on this as he proclaimed that he doesn't make as many mistakes as his rivals, and if he's close enough, he would make the difference. He said,

"I'm also dependent on what the others do. But yes, the others do indeed make more mistakes than I do. I'm not surprised by that. If I can be close enough, I know I'll always make the difference. It's just that we're not close enough at the moment. Although it turned out that way today."

In what was a reality check as well, however, the driver was quite blunt in specifying that the car is still very difficult to drive. He said,

"We are first, but the problems have not been solved yet. The car is still very difficult to drive. Even when I see the on-board images, I see enough improvement."

Max Verstappen applauded by Jacques Villeneuve

Max Verstappen's pole position came as a surprise to a lot of people. Even the Red Bull team had not expected that kind of a result. Former F1 champion Jacques Villeneuve also applauded the 4x champion for the kind of hunger he had and how happy he was after achieving the result. He said on Sky Sports,

"A lot of is has to do with the lower downforce rear wing. He got his car through the corners and had the top speed. You can see the smile he had in his eyes. It's amazing to see a driver with so many wins and championships, that he still has that pleasure."

Max Verstappen will be starting the race in pole position but will have the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri right behind.