Verstappen sees returning problem on the Red Bull car appear once again

The slow-speed circuits have been Red Bull's weakness this season so far, and it did not prove to be any different today in Monaco, Verstappen explained. "I don't think [the car improved]. We were actually slower than last year in qualifying. I don't think we have improved what we wanted to improve around here," he told GPblog among others after the race.

For Verstappen, the two McLarens and Charles Leclerc's Ferrari were out of reach today. "I had no grip. I was just driving around with the grip that I had from the tyre. But you could see still then you can't pass," he said about holding Norris up as he was waiting for a red flag.

Still, Verstappen did not find this result bad given the circumstances. "Honestly I don't really think about the championship. I just want to go race by race. Of course, some tracks you might be a bit more competitive, and some you will struggle a bit more and I think it was clear that again here in Monaco we struggled."

"Honestly every year we have struggled here with this new generation of cars, only in ‘23 we had a massive pace advantage and we still win the race. But all the other years for me personally have always been a big struggle," he continued.

Ahead of this weekend, the Dutch driver did not expect to finish on the podium, and he stands by that. "I think considering our pace the whole weekend, we did a good job. I think as a team of course we're never happy with P4, but we also have to accept when we know our limitations with the car."

"I mean, we try really every single year, but yes, for whatever reason, here it never seems to work," he concluded.