Max Verstappen describes his Red Bull car’s performance in Shanghai as a constant battle for survival, barely managing to complete laps during qualifying for the Chinese Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s Disappointing Weekend
The four-time champion expresses frustration from the start of the weekend, labeling the car undriveable on Friday and stating, “We have never had anything this bad.” Verstappen secures only eighth place in qualifying, a full second behind pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes, after finishing ninth in the sprint race, outside the points.
Despite extensive setup changes, Verstappen notes no improvement: “We change a lot on the car, and it makes zero difference. The whole weekend we’ve been off. The car is completely undriveable. I cannot even put a bit of a reference in. Every lap is like survival.”
He adds that flipping the setup upside down yielded identical results, predicting more challenges in the race: “We turned it upside down and it was exactly the same, so I’m expecting exactly the same tomorrow.”
Car Handling Issues Exposed
Following a recovery from 20th to sixth in Australia, Red Bull’s RB22 reveals severe balance problems in China, making fast laps nearly impossible. Verstappen highlights the inconsistency: “It’s very inconsistent. Whatever lap I do, I am like: ‘All right, well, that is it.’ Can I go four tenths faster? Maybe. Can I go four tenths slower? Yeah, that’s a big chance as well because it’s just all over the place.”
“It’s incredibly difficult. There’s no balance, I cannot lean on the car. Every lap is a fight,” he continues.
Red Bull, now producing its own engines for the first time, showed promise in pre-season but struggles on race weekends despite past dominance. Teammate Isack Hadjar finishes 15th in the sprint and ninth in qualifying, trailing Pierre Gasly’s Alpine along with Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren.
Team Principal Acknowledges Broad Challenges
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies admits the need for comprehensive upgrades: “The gap to Ferrari and Mercedes is substantial, it’s probably half in the straight, half in the corner. There is not one single area that we need to improve. It’s a 360 improvement.”
Other Top Drivers Weigh In
World champion Lando Norris, qualifying fifth for McLaren—the 2025 constructors’ champions—acknowledges a performance gap to Mercedes and Ferrari. “My final sector has been pretty poor and we have been losing a little bit on the straights to some of the other cars, which we need to understand why,” Norris says. “The last corner here is like my worst corner of the season… Where we are now is where we deserve to be.”
Lewis Hamilton starts third for Ferrari, aiming for his first podium in 477 days after fourth in Australia. “We’re hunting, we’re chasing,” Hamilton states. “Our statistics show they [Mercedes] are between four and six tenths faster than us. But maybe with strategy… I need to drive better tomorrow.”
