Verstappen Struggles with Challenging Start to F1 Hungarian GP Weekend
Max Verstappen faced a tough opening day at the Hungarian Grand Prix as he navigated through the Friday practice sessions, finishing a disappointing 14th in the second session, over a second behind pace-setter Lando Norris. The reigning world champion expressed confusion regarding his Red Bull car’s performance, stating that “nothing really works” amid his struggles for grip and balance.
Verstappen’s Friday Challenges
Verstappen expressed frustration over his RB21’s performance, describing the car as “undriveable,” likening his experience to “driving on ice.” The Dutchman reported a significant lack of grip, making it difficult to pinpoint the issues. “Today was very tough, just a really low grip feeling and not really a balance in the car,” he shared. Despite Red Bull’s history of overnight improvements, Verstappen acknowledged the current challenges, indicating a clear need for investigation into the car’s performance.
Team Dynamics and Future Prospects
Following his disappointing outing, Verstappen was seen deep in discussion with team principal Laurent Mekies and his engineering team to reassess and strategize moving forward. The reigning champion remains hopeful, noting, “I’m sure we can do better,” while acknowledging Mclaren‘s impressive speed throughout the sessions.
Incident with Stewards
Adding a twist to the day, Verstappen was summoned by the stewards due to an incident involving a towel that was inadvertently left in his car. He tossed it from the cockpit during a lap, leading to a warning for Red Bull regarding an unsafe release. “It’s just a towel that you normally wipe your face with… I drove offline and I got rid of it in the safest way possible,” Verstappen explained, justifying his actions to the stewards.
Teammate Tsunoda’s Perspective
Yuki Tsunoda, Verstappen’s teammate, also experienced challenges but finished in a stronger ninth position, eight-tenths off the pace. He noted a different experience compared to Verstappen and emphasized that while balance was not the main issue, the team needed to address their lack of grip. “I think we have to find something, a core limitation that we’re probably missing,” Tsunoda stated, highlighting a collaborative approach for improvement.
As the weekend progresses, all eyes will be on Red Bull Racing as they attempt to resolve their performance woes ahead of the competitive qualifying session.
