Max Verstappen Spill the Beans on His “Love Hate Relationship” with 2025 Red Bull Challenger

Max Verstappen got real on Red Bull's performance with the RB21 challenger and opened up on the uncertainty of the car at times in 2025.

Max Verstappen Spill the Beans on His “Love Hate Relationship” with 2025 Red Bull Challenger

Max Verstappen (via Getty)

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Max Verstappen suffered from a season full of ups and downs in 2025. The Dutchman started the year off in great form, but lost drastic performance mid-way through the year. Then, Verstappen achieved a massive resurgence in performance and finished the year after achieving six wins and ten consecutive podium finishes in the final races. Now, after such a year, the 28-year-old opens up on his thoughts with Red Bull’s RB21 challenger.

Red Bull dominated a majority of the ground-effect era and was believed to have the final season in the bag as well. However, the team was unable to replicate the dominant, record-breaking RB19 challenger from the 2023 season for Max Verstappen and Co. The team’s performance only deteriorated from that point forward, with the 2025 season being the worst of all. The Dutchman certainly wasn’t happy with the RB21’s pace and balance at times, and was visibly frustrated while struggling on race day.

Still, Max Verstappen’s shocking resurgence in pace was possible because of the performance extracted from the RB21 challenger. As such, the car wasn’t as bad as he thought it was initially. Now, after losing the 2025 driver’s title by just two points, Verstappen reassured everyone that he had no regrets about his season. The four-time champion insisted that the performance of the team remained strong.

Further, Max Verstappen shockingly claimed that he completely hated the RB21 car at times in the 2025 season. However, he accepted that he loved it at times, and hence did not have a one-sided opinion on it. Moreover, the 28-year-old tried his best to extract the best performance possible, even on weekends when the team clearly did not seem to be the favorite to win. As such, the Dutchman acknowledged that the RB21, though with its quirks, was a rollercoaster of a car.

Yeah, I think so. I have no regrets about my season. I think the performance has been strong. I’ve hated this car at times, but I’ve also loved it at times. And I always tried to extract the most from it, even in the difficult weekends that we’ve had. But, yeah, it’s been, like I said before, a proper rollercoaster with the car.

Max Verstappen said, as reported by RacingNews365.

Max Verstappen reveals ‘great atmosphere’ at Red Bull following Christian Horner’s exit

Red Bull certainly turned things around for the better following Christian Horner‘s exit from the team mid-way through the year. Laurent Mekies took the reins at Milton Keynes, and the team started performing much better immediately. Even Helmut Marko was fired following the culmination of the 2025 season. Now, Max Verstappen reveals the great atmosphere that is present within the team, probably because of the refreshed leadership.

Max Verstappen (via Kym Illman/Getty Images)
Max Verstappen (via Kym Illman/Getty Images)

Max Verstappen claimed that the final nine races of the 2025 season had been much more enjoyable for him than the rest of the year. Moreover, he pointed out the ‘great atmosphere’ at Red Bull that further helped him achieve some great results with the team. Verstappen asserted that the team was on a roll with better energy, belief, and confidence heading into the next season.

Luckily, the last, I would say, eight, nine rounds in general have been a lot more enjoyable, And also, in the team, we have a great atmosphere at the moment. We’re really on a roll — positive energy, belief, confidence — and that’s exactly what you want heading into next year.

Max Verstappen noted.

Red Bull is certainly prepared better to take on the challenge under the new regulations in the 2026 season. For now, Max Verstappen will take a much-needed break from the sport over the winter and spend some quality time with his family. The Dutchman has proved his racing mettle to everyone on the grid and doesn’t need to do it anymore than this.

Read More: Helmut Marko Insists Max Verstappen “Would’ve Been 2025 Champion” if Red Bull Sacked Christian Horner earlier