Red Bull had been struggling to match McLaren and Mercedes over the last few weeks which is why the Milton-Keynes-based outfit brought major upgrades to the Hungarian GP. However, it didn’t add any performance and Max Verstappen slammed Red Bull for the same.
Verstappen told Telegraaf how the car felt in Qualifying after the changes, and the three-time World Champion did not mince his words.
“On Friday I already didn’t think it was optimal, maybe we have a different opinion on that, not everyone understood the situation. I think maybe some people need to wake up a bit. It’s not all very bad, but if you want to be World Champion it has to be better than this.”
Red Bull’s upgrade package in Hungary featured a new floor, a drastically redesigned sidepod, and an engine cover. They reverted to an older spec reportedly because of the Hungaroring’s low-downforce layout.
Regardless, the upgrades did not make any difference on Saturday. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri finished ahead of the Dutchman in Qualifying, grabbing P1 and P2 respectively.
Thankfully, the gap to Norris was not that huge, with Verstappen being half-a-tenth slower.
Verstappen “frustrated” after Qualifying
Verstappen, despite Red Bull’s loss of its dominant grasp on the grid, trusted the team’s ability to improve with upgrades but showed slight concern over rivals overtaking them in the development race. After Hungary, that concern turned into frustration.
Verstappen lost the rear of his car when he came out of the final corner during his Q3 run. Immediately, he knew he wouldn’t finish on pole, and was seen punching the wheel of his car.
“I’m frustrated. Just because we are not fast enough. It’s been for a while like that. This weekend we brought quite a few upgrades to the car and it’s still not fast enough.”
The Red Bull driver will start the Hungarian GP from P3 on the grid, and while it isn’t a very bad position, the track’s layout makes it difficult for any driver to make overtakes. As such, a good race pace on his RB20 coupled with a good launch off the line will be crucial for Verstappen to go for a win.
