Max Verstappen describes his Red Bull’s performance at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai as a relentless battle for survival, with each lap proving nearly impossible to complete cleanly. The four-time champion labels the car undriveable, stating it represents the worst setup the team has ever faced.
Qualifying Struggles for Red Bull
Verstappen secures only eighth place on the grid, finishing a full second behind pole-sitter Kimi Antonelli of Mercedes. Despite extensive setup changes, he reports no improvement. “We change a lot on the car, and it makes zero difference,” Verstappen says. “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.”
The RB22 suffers from severe balance issues, making consistent lap times elusive. “It’s very inconsistent,” he adds. “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. There’s no balance; I cannot lean on the car. Every lap is a fight.”
After flipping the setup completely, Verstappen expects similar challenges in Sunday’s race. His teammate, Isack Hadjar, finishes ninth in qualifying and 15th in the Saturday sprint, trailing drivers like Pierre Gasly of Alpine, along with Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren cars.
Team Principal Addresses Broad Shortcomings
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies acknowledges the need for comprehensive upgrades. “The gap to Ferrari and Mercedes is substantial—probably half in the straights, half in the corners,” Mekies states. “There is not one single area that we need to improve. It’s a 360-degree effort across all departments in a development race.”
The team, now producing its own engines for the first time, showed promise in pre-season testing but struggles on race weekends despite past dominance.
Other Top Drivers Weigh In
World champion Lando Norris qualifies fifth for McLaren, the 2025 constructors’ champions, but admits a performance gap to Mercedes and Ferrari. “My final sector has been pretty poor, and we’ve been losing time on the straights to some other cars, which we need to understand,” Norris explains. “The last corner here is my worst of the season; I made a big mistake on my final lap. Where we are now is where we deserve to be.”
Lewis Hamilton starts third for Ferrari, targeting his first podium in 477 days after a fourth-place finish in Australia. “We’re hunting and chasing to close the gap to Mercedes,” Hamilton says. “Our stats show they are four to six tenths faster. It’s unlikely we’ll beat them outright, but strategy, a good start, or other factors might help. I need to drive better tomorrow without destroying my tires.”
