Red Bull driver Max Verstappen laughed off a minor pit lane accident he suffered on his way to securing pole position for Sunday’s 2023 British Grand Prix.
During a red flag period caused by Kevin Magnussen’s Haas stopping on the end of the hanger straight, Verstappen crashed when leaving his garage, damaging his front wing.
Following quick repair work from the Red Bull mechanics, Verstappen was able to get back on track and duly take pole position by over two-tenths from McLaren’s Lando Norris.
“I think I am scared to come out of my box,” joked Verstappen to the press. “It happens. Last time I hit the wall here was a couple of years ago.
“Generally, I was just trying to get the laps [in]. We knew we had a quick car, so you don’t risk it.
“Still, that last lap [I had to] pass a few cars here and there on the out-lap to get the lap in, but luckily it was all good enough.
“The lap itself was alright, just in some places I got caught out with an increase in understeer, but with the conditions we had, it was quite tricky to have [the] perfect lap out there.”
Happy to see McLaren near the front
Although Verstappen secured pole, McLaren stole the headlines in qualifying with Lando Norris ending his two-year wait for a front-row starting slot with second ahead of rookie teammate Oscar Piastri.
It marks a remarkable return to form for McLaren after a difficult start to the season, which saw them lose ground to rivals Alpine and Aston Martin.
However, an upgrade package introduced at the Austrian GP changed McLaren’s fortunes, with Norris finishing fourth after a strong weekend.
“It’s great to see both of them up here,” said Verstappen. “Great result for their team [for] where they started off in the year.
“To see them here it’s quite impressive as well. So hopefully, they can also have a very strong race tomorrow.”
