During the Hungarian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen voiced his frustration over team radio regarding the timing of his pit stop. Speaking to outlets including GPblog, the Red Bull Racing driver later explained the reason behind the team’s decision.
Verstappen made a relatively early pit stop during the Hungarian Grand Prix, which ultimately dropped him into heavy traffic. Over the team radio, the Dutchman didn’t hide his frustration, labelling the strategy as a ‘terrible idea'.
So why did Red Bull opt for the early stop? Was it an attempt to undercut Gabriel Bortoleto and Fernando Alonso ahead of him, or were his tyres simply worn out?
“I think a combination of the two, because I didn't feel good on the tires anyway. I had no grip. I was just sliding around a lot. But then, yeah, I got stuck in too much traffic, but the problem is that even with new tyres, I just didn't have the low-speed grip they were just pulling it everyone was just pulling away from me in all the low-speed corners and I couldn't really attack anything, so yeah, I just made everything really difficult,” Verstappen explained.
In the opening stages of the race at the Hungaroring, Verstappen found himself stuck in a DRS train. As the laps unfolded, he began to feel the effect of tyre wear and informed his race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, over the radio. To preserve the yres, Verstapppen backed off slightly to drive in cleaner air.
Red Bull eventually called him in for an early switch to hard tyres, but the strategy backfired. He rejoined the race in 16th place—deep in traffic, and immediately made his displeasure clear: “Guys, this was really terrible, this idea. I have pitted in so much traffic,” he said over the radio.