After Max Verstappen’s P2 at the Hungarian GP: Astonishing background

Max Verstappen has finished on the podium three times in the last four Formula 1 World Championship races – second in Austria, third in Belgium, second in Hungary. In England, he was on course for a podium finish before his rear wing mechanism let him down.

What’s remarkable about his P2 finish at the Hungaroring is that Max Verstappen was ranting and raving about his car – both in practice and in the race – yet still managed such a performance – how is that possible?

Long-serving Formula 1 driver Martin Brundle (67), now a Grand Prix pundit for British broadcaster Sky, is fascinated: “Max is angry with the car, which pushes him forward through the corners even though he doesn’t want it to, and I think it takes him by surprise now and then – that’s not what you want to feel from a car as a driver.”

“I’m fascinated by Max. He drives brilliantly; he squeezes everything out of that racing car, and not many can do that – work around problems. Very few drivers I’ve met in my life can master such an unstable car and get it onto the podium despite all the difficulties.”

“So Max is being his usual self again at the moment, but he’s obviously trying to put pressure on the team at the same time to get the team back on the winning track.”

“What struck me at the Hungaroring was that Verstappen spent much of the race complaining about poor handling – or, more specifically, what he described as ‘aerodynamic loss’.”

“I wanted to find out a bit more about that, so I spoke to a few people. I was told that when the Red Bull Racing car sustains damage to its aerodynamic parts – particularly underneath the car, for example following an aggressive kerb strike – this has a disproportionate effect on the overall downforce and, consequently, on grip. That’s the reasoning behind Max’s comment on aerodynamic degradation.”