Max Verstappen Brutally Dismisses Red Bull Collapse Theory Amid Miserable 2026 Start

Max Verstappen refuses to accept that Red Bull's struggles in 2026 are because of their poor form in the previous seasons.

Max Verstappen Brutally Dismisses Red Bull Collapse Theory Amid Miserable 2026 Start

Max Verstappen and Gianpiero Lambiase (via Red Bull)

In Short
  • Max Verstappen criticizes the complexity of the 2026 F1 regulations while backing Red Bull amid their struggles.
  • He acknowledges Red Bull's current performance is worse compared to previous seasons but believes improvements are possible.
  • Verstappen suggests returning to V8 power units as a potential solution to the flawed regulations, though he doubts immediate changes will occur.

Red Bull and Max Verstappen have suffered from a woeful start to the new regulations in 2026. Despite a decent outing during initial testing sessions, Verstappen has been unable to score notable results. As such, the Dutchman has remained highly critical of the new regulations and their complexity. Now, the four-time champion refuses to label the current condition as Red Bull’s collapse in Formula 1.

At the season opener Australian GP, Max Verstappen crashed out during the Qualifying session and started the race from P20. Though he pushed hard on track, he could only finish in P6. Moreover, the Chinese GP saw a dramatic end for Verstappen as he had to suffer from a DNF due to technical issues in the car. Still, the Dutchman sees the positive in the situation and backs Red Bull amid their difficulties.

Max Verstappen was questioned whether Red Bull’s failure with the RB21 challenger in 2025 was related to the current RB22’s downfall as well. However, Verstappen firmly believed that this wasn’t the case. Moreover, he argued that Milton Keynes turned around their results in 2022 after suffering from difficulties throughout the 2021 season. The 28-year-old insisted that the team was definitely very fast in 2022 with the RB17 challenger.

No, because then you can say the same from ’21 to ’22, and we were definitely very quick in ’22.

Max Verstappen said as reported by RacingNews365.

Still, despite backing up his team, Max Verstappen did accept that Red Bull was in a much better position in the final few years of the ground-effect era as compared to their current state. Milton Keynes is currently P5 in the battle and is losing to teams like Haas, McLaren, and others. Further, Verstappen declared there were many areas where the Austrian constructor could improve its performance.

The last few years, we were in a much better stable position than we are now, There’s a lot of stuff that we need to do better at the moment.

Max Verstappen added.

Max Verstappen suggests ‘solution’ to fix 2026 F1 regulations

Certainly, the 2026 regulations have been widely criticized by a majority of people on the grid. Many teams and drivers are suffering from dismal results because of the complexity of the new rules. Max Verstappen, who already criticized the regulations, calling them ‘mario kart-like,’ has now suggested fixes to the regulations, in hopes of improving racing.

Max Verstappen (via Red Bull)
Max Verstappen (via Red Bull)

Max Verstappen accepted that there were some changes that could help ease the regulations, but ultimately, they remained fundamentally flawed. Verstappen reckoned that returning to the V8 era of power units could be the solution to the current problems. However, he believes that this change isn’t going to take place as early as the 2027 season. The four-time champion labeled his current state as ‘painful’.

You can help it a little bit but it’s fundamentally flawed. Yes, [adding V8s would be the solution] but I mean I don’t see that happening next year. It’s painful.

Max Verstappen said in a post-race interview.

For now, Max Verstappen will have to live with the challenge of the new regulations. Meanwhile, the Dutchman is also gearing up to race in the 24 hours of Nurburgring with Mercedes in the NLS. Verstappen will then return to the grid to prepare for the upcoming Japanese GP. The fans can catch a glimpse of him on the Nurburgring YouTube channel.

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