𝗠𝗦𝗫.∆𝗘𝗣³ (@msx..aep)

Red Bull's turnaround in the 2026 F1 season has been one of the most impressive developments of the year, particularly considering how uncompetitive the RB22 looked at certain circuits earlier in the season. I think the biggest reason is that Red Bull has finally developed a car that allows Max Verstappen to exploit his driving strengths, rather than constantly compensate for its weaknesses. It hasn't been one sudden breakthrough, either. Red Bull has made several significant improvements, culminating in Verstappen winning the Malaysian and Singapore Grands Prix. From midfield struggles to race victories Red Bull's Austria and Azerbaijan upgrade packages transformed the RB22's competitiveness, while Verstappen made the most of the improvements. 1. Red Bull finally addressed the RB22's aerodynamic weaknesses The biggest technical breakthrough came through two major development packages. Austria — June 2026 Red Bull introduced changes to the floor, rear suspension, rear wing, exhaust and bodywork. These improvements targeted aerodynamic load, airflow management and reliability. The results were immediately encouraging: Verstappen went from fifth on the grid to second in the race, challenging Mercedes for victory. Azerbaijan — September 2026 This was arguably the more decisive upgrade. Red Bull introduced a redesigned floor and diffuser, revised sidepods, cooling outlets, mirrors and halo fairing. The new floor was particularly important because it aimed to generate additional downforce while maintaining more stable airflow. The results were striking: Azerbaijan: Verstappen P2, Hadjar P3. Malaysia: Verstappen took pole and won. Singapore: Verstappen took pole and won again. The fact that Hadjar also reached the podium in Azerbaijan is important. It demonstrates that the car itself had become significantly more competitive, rather than the improvement being entirely down to Verstappen. 2. The RB22 has become much more predictable — and that's huge for Max This is probably the most important improvement specifically for Verstappen. Earlier in the season, Max struggled with inconsistent handling. He couldn't always predict how the car would react to his steering inputs. Following the Baku upgrades, he explained that the car was behaving more normally and was easier to drive. He also confirmed that the improved balance allowed him to push harder and extract more performance. Why is that particularly important for Max? Corner entry: Max is exceptionally good at braking late and rotating the car, but he needs confidence in the front end. Car control: A predictable rear end allows him to exploit an aggressive driving style without constantly correcting slides. Qualifying: Greater confidence makes it easier to extract the final few tenths over one lap. Tyre management: A more stable platform can reduce unnecessary sliding and overheating. These are likely benefits of the improved balance, rather than individually confirmed effects of the upgrade. 3. Red Bull's power unit has become a major advantage One particularly interesting aspect of 2026 is that Red Bull's first in-house power unit project has produced a genuinely competitive engine. The FIA's performance assessment identified Red Bull as having the strongest power unit, and its straight-line performance was particularly valuable in Azerbaijan. At Baku, Verstappen recovered from P8 to P2 while Hadjar finished P3. Red Bull's power unit performance played a major role, although Verstappen's qualifying engine problem had also disguised some of the car's potential. The advantage is especially valuable under the 2026 regulations, where electrical energy deployment and recovery can have an enormous influence on lap times. 4. Red Bull has found a better setup window One of the biggest differences between early-season Red Bull and the car we saw in Malaysia is how effectively the team can set it up. In Malaysia, Verstappen explained that Red Bull had improved its setups over several races, alongside the physical upgrades.

The key to Max Verstappen winning was that Red Bull and Max handled the chaotic wet-to-dry race almost perfectly: * Correct tyre choice at the start. After the huge rain delay, Max started on intermediates. A lot of drivers, including Hamilton, Leclerc, Norris and Piastri, gambled on slicks and lost substantial time while the circuit was still too wet. * He recovered from a poor start. Max had a temporary lack of power and both Mercedes cars jumped him, leaving him P3 behind Antonelli and Russell. Max later explained that he had to wait for the power to kick in. * His pace on the intermediates was excellent. By Lap 6 he passed Russell around the outside at Turn 4 for P2, and by Lap 8 he was already attacking Antonelli. * The first Safety Car was crucial. Bottas went off on Lap 9 just as the track was becoming suitable for slicks. Max, Antonelli, Russell and Hadjar could therefore make relatively cheap stops. Mercedes put its drivers onto mediums, while Red Bull put Max onto softs. * That soft-tyre call gave Max the weapon he needed. At the restart he immediately attacked Antonelli and swept around the outside into Turn 1 to take the lead. Russell also passed Antonelli shortly afterwards. Max then used the extra grip to pull more than three seconds clear. * Once in clean air, Max was simply faster. Antonelli eventually recovered P2, but Max continued extending the gap. Antonelli also ran wide and hit the pit-entry bollard on Lap 24, helping Max’s advantage grow to about 7.5 seconds. * Red Bull covered Mercedes’ strategy. When Antonelli and Russell made their next stops, Max responded and still emerged with roughly an 11-second advantage. * The late VSC/Safety Car erased that comfortable lead, but Max handled the final restart perfectly. Antonelli got another chance at him, but Max controlled the restart and rebuilt enough of a margin to win by 2.307 seconds. So this wasn’t really a case of Max inheriting the win from Russell’s retirement — he was already comfortably leading before Russell stopped. Russell’s retirement affected the lower podium positions/championship picture rather than deciding P1. What makes it particularly notable is that this was Max’s first victory of 2026, Red Bull’s first victory of the season, and the first F1 win for Red Bull Ford Powertrains. Considering the RB22 has generally not been the strongest car this year, Sepang’s conditions, Red Bull’s strategy and Max’s wet/mixed-condition pace all came together almost perfectly.

It was a combination of an enormous skill/pace advantage, the unusual elimination format, and an absolutely chaotic first lap. Verstappen completed the entire Max vs 100 challenge today at Silverstone in only 14 laps / roughly 35 minutes, despite starting P101. The biggest factor was the start. There was major congestion and several incidents almost immediately. Max managed to avoid the worst of it—including going across the grass—and eliminated/passed roughly 64 drivers on lap 1 alone, going from P101 to around P37. A full-course yellow then neutralized things. After that, his actual pace became ridiculous compared with most of the field. Reports had Verstappen running more than three seconds per lap faster than the remaining drivers. Remember, the 100 weren’t 100 professional kart racers: the field included fans, creators, journalists and athletes of widely varying experience. The karts themselves were identical and ballast was used to reduce weight advantages, so Max’s advantage largely came from driving. His karting background mattered enormously. Verstappen started karting at four and spent essentially his entire childhood racing karts, eventually becoming KZ World Champion at 15. Even after years away from competitive karting, braking extremely late, carrying speed through corners, positioning a kart for the next pass and reading traffic are skills he’s spent most of his life developing. And the format made overtaking 100 people considerably more achievable than winning a conventional 101-driver race. Once Max passed somebody, that driver was effectively eliminated and had to stay behind him, so he didn’t have to worry about those drivers attacking him again. The amount of relevant traffic therefore continually decreased. His progression shows just how quickly it happened: P101 → ~P37 after Lap 1 → Top 10 by Lap 6 → all 100 passed by Lap 14. So while “P101 to P1” sounds almost impossible, this wasn’t equivalent to Max starting P101 against 100 professional kart racers. But passing every single person in only 14 laps was still far quicker than the organizers appear to have anticipated—especially considering the original format gave him far more time to accomplish it. The funniest part is that organizers introduced an additional shortcut/“Chucky Lap” for the leading survivors to make Max’s job harder. Max was supposed to receive his own shortcut after lap 15—but he’d already beaten everybody before he reached lap 15.

Yes — and that’s what makes Verstappen’s 2026 season so impressive. After Madrid, he has six Grand Prix podiums despite Red Bull sitting only 4th in the Constructors’ Championship, with no wins. His podiums have come in Canada (P3), Austria (P2), Belgium (P3), Hungary (P2), Italy (P3), and Madrid/Spain (P2). The key is that Max has repeatedly turned a car that normally belongs around the second/third row into a podium contender. How he’s doing it 1. He’s extracting more than the RB22’s normal performance level. Red Bull themselves entered 2026 believing Mercedes, McLaren and Ferrari were ahead, effectively putting the RB22 fourth in the pecking order. The car has also suffered balance and reliability problems. Yet when there’s an opportunity to fight the top three teams, Max is usually the Red Bull capable of taking it. 2. His race pace tends to be stronger than Red Bull’s qualifying position suggests. Austria is probably the best example. He started P5, quickly passed Antonelli, Leclerc and Hamilton and finished only 1.611 seconds behind Russell, despite Red Bull not having the outright fastest package. Hungary was similar: the Red Bull wasn’t the fastest car, yet Verstappen still finished P2 behind Norris. 3. He’s extremely good at maximizing “podium opportunity” races. If Mercedes, Ferrari or McLaren have a bad qualifying, strategy problem, incident or simply aren’t quick at a particular circuit, Max tends to be there immediately. That’s important. A fourth-fastest car doesn’t mean it is P7-P8 every weekend — the gaps fluctuate considerably by circuit. When the RB22 is temporarily the second- or third-best package, Max converts that into P2/P3 rather than P4/P5. 4. Red Bull has improved the car during the season. The RB22 isn’t exactly the same fourth-fastest car it was in March. The huge Miami package changed the front wing, floor, sidepods, diffuser, rear wing and several other areas, while Red Bull made further significant changes around Austria. So although I’d still rank Red Bull fourth overall across the season, there have been individual weekends where it has been considerably more competitive. 5. Max’s consistency is hiding some of the car’s deficit. The comparison with Hadjar is revealing. After Madrid, Red Bull has 204 points, while Max alone has 127 and Hadjar 71. Max has therefore scored about 62% of Red Bull’s entire points total, despite also suffering several DNFs. And perhaps the craziest part is that the six podiums could have been even more. He’s had four DNFs already — China, Monaco, Britain and the Netherlands. So I wouldn’t describe it simply as “Max has the third-most podiums because the Red Bull is secretly better than fourth fastest.” It’s more that the RB22 is fourth-best on average, occasionally becomes a genuine podium-level car, and Verstappen is converting an unusually high percentage of those opportunities into podiums. That’s arguably one of the strongest indicators of how well he’s driving in 2026: P6 in the championship doesn’t look spectacular on paper, but six podiums from a winless fourth-place constructor does.

Michael Schumacher winning 72 Grands Prix with Scuderia Ferrari was the result of a rare combination of driver ability, team building, technical preparation, and Ferrari’s transformation into the dominant F1 force of the early 2000s. 1. He joined Ferrari when they were rebuilding When Schumacher arrived in 1996, Ferrari had not won a drivers’ championship since 1979 and had struggled with reliability and organisation. He didn’t just arrive at a winning team — he helped create one. Schumacher pushed Ferrari to bring key people from his successful Benetton Formula era, including: * Ross Brawn (technical director) * Rory Byrne (chief designer) * Jean Todt (team principal) Together they built Ferrari into a championship machine. ⸻ 2. Schumacher was exceptionally consistent His win count was not just from having the fastest car. He was incredibly good at converting opportunities: * Extremely fast qualifying pace * Elite racecraft * Tire management * Mechanical sympathy * Rarely making costly mistakes * Ability to perform under pressure During his Ferrari peak (2000–2004), he won 48 races in 85 starts — a win rate of over 56%. ⸻ 3. Ferrari’s dominance from 2000–2004 The biggest reason his Ferrari win total exploded was the era of dominance: 2000: 9 wins → first Ferrari title since 1979 2001: 9 wins 2002: 11 wins 2003: 6 wins 2004: 13 wins The 2004 season was especially remarkable: * Schumacher won 13 of 18 races * Ferrari won 15 of 18 races (including Barrichello’s two wins) * Schumacher secured his 7th world championship The Ferrari F2004 is widely considered one of the most dominant F1 cars ever. ⸻ 4. Ferrari’s tyre partnership was a huge advantage Ferrari worked extremely closely with Bridgestone Corporation. Schumacher was heavily involved in testing and development, often doing thousands of kilometres of private testing. This gave Ferrari: * Tires optimized around Schumacher’s driving style * Better race strategy information * Faster development during the season ⸻ 5. He maximized the opportunities of his era Schumacher also benefited from the fact that: * Seasons were shorter (usually 16–18 races) * Ferrari’s reliability was excellent * He often had the fastest package * He had a strong teammate relationship with Rubens Barrichello, who regularly supported Ferrari’s championship campaigns ⸻ 6. The numbers show how extraordinary it was Schumacher’s Ferrari record: * 72 wins * 116 podiums * 58 pole positions * 5 consecutive championships (2000–2004) * 6 constructors’ championships with Ferrari To put it into perspective: before Schumacher, Ferrari had won just 79 races in the previous 45 years of F1. Schumacher alone nearly matched Ferrari’s entire historical win tally at the time. His 72 Ferrari wins were not simply because Ferrari was dominant — Ferrari became dominant partly because Schumacher helped build the system that produced that dominance.

It was mostly a case of race pace, strategy, and chaos ahead of them, rather than either Red Bull suddenly having qualifying-level speed. Max Verstappen started only P6 after a disappointing Saturday, while Isack Hadjar qualified P8, with Red Bull struggling to get the tyres into the right window over one lap at the Hungaroring. For Verstappen’s P2: * Red Bull’s race pace was considerably stronger than its qualifying pace. * The team made what Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies described as some “spicy” strategy calls that helped Max gain track position. * A key moment was the late Virtual Safety Car. While some rivals pitted, Verstappen stayed out and benefited from maintaining track position. Ferrari’s Lewis Hamilton, for example, lost ground after stopping during that period. * Oscar Piastri’s retirement also removed one of the fastest cars from contention, opening up a podium place. * Once in clean air, Verstappen managed the race well and inherited second behind Lando Norris. Even Max admitted afterward that he was surprised to come away with P2 given how difficult the weekend had looked on Saturday. For Hadjar’s P6: * Hungary is notoriously difficult for overtaking, so starting eighth already put him in the mix for a strong points finish. * Racing Bulls/Red Bull’s race pace was better than their qualifying pace, allowing Hadjar to stay with the midfield leaders. * The retirements and strategy swings ahead of him promoted him up the order, and he avoided the mistakes and penalties that caught out some rivals. So the short version is: their qualifying pace was poor, but their Sunday pace was much better, Red Bull executed strategy well, the VSC timing favored Verstappen, Piastri retired, and several rivals lost positions through pit-stop choices. On a track where track position is king, that was enough to turn P6 and P8 on the grid into P2 and P6 at the flag.

Since winning his maiden World Championship in 2021, Max Verstappen has put together one of the most dominant stretches in Formula 1 history. He won four consecutive Drivers’ Championships (2021–2024) and added numerous all-time records before narrowly missing out on a fifth title in 2025. Here’s how each season unfolded: 2022: 🏆 Champion 15 wins (then an F1 record), 454 points, overcame early reliability issues to dominate Ferrari after mid-season. 2023: 🏆 Champion Arguably the greatest season in F1 history: 19 wins in 22 races, 21 podiums, 575 points, 10 consecutive wins (record). Red Bull won all but one race. 2024: 🏆 Champion Won 9 races. Red Bull lost its early-season dominance, but Verstappen’s consistency and error-free driving secured a fourth straight title despite McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes closing the gap. 2025: 2nd Won 8 races and mounted a strong late-season comeback, but ultimately finished runner-up after Red Bull no longer had the fastest package overall. Overall numbers after his first title (2022–2025) * 4 seasons * 52 Grand Prix victories * 4 Drivers’ Championships in a row (2021–2024 overall) * 2nd place in 2025 * 1,887 championship points (2022–2025) * Continued to extend his career records for wins, podiums and poles. Some of the records he set * Most wins in a season: 19 (2023). * Most consecutive wins: 10 (2023). * First driver to score 575 points in a season. * Became a four-time World Champion by age 27, joining legends like Alain Prost and Sebastian Vettel. Why this period stands out His dominance wasn’t just about having the fastest car: * 2022: Recovered from early DNFs to comfortably win the title. * 2023: Produced arguably the most statistically dominant season in F1 history. * 2024: Won the championship despite Red Bull no longer clearly having the quickest car for much of the second half of the season. * 2025: Kept himself in the title fight with exceptional performances even as McLaren emerged as the benchmark, ultimately finishing second after a strong late-season run. Overall, Verstappen’s post-2021 era established him as one of Formula 1’s all-time greats, combining unprecedented statistical dominance with the ability to win championships under very different competitive circumstances.

Max Verstappen came very close to winning the 2026 Austrian Grand Prix despite starting only fifth after crashing in qualifying. Several factors combined to put him in contention: * Red Bull’s upgrade package worked. Austria was the first race where Red Bull’s new aerodynamic package genuinely closed the gap to Mercedes. Verstappen said it was the first time all season he felt he had a car capable of fighting for victory. * Strong race pace. After an aggressive opening battle with Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen quickly settled into excellent pace and steadily reduced the gap to race leader George Russell. * Efficient strategy and tyre management. Red Bull executed a clean race strategically, allowing Verstappen to stay within striking distance of Russell throughout the final stint. * Verstappen maximized the car. As has often been the case, he extracted more from the RB22 than seemed possible, especially through the medium-speed corners where the upgrades improved stability. However, he ultimately fell 1.6 seconds short for two main reasons: 1. Rear-end issues developed late in the race. Verstappen reported balance problems with the rear of the car in the closing laps, preventing him from making one final attack on Russell. 2. Russell drove a near-perfect race. Russell controlled tyre wear, defended when necessary, and never allowed Verstappen to get close enough to attempt a pass. The result was: 1. George Russell (Mercedes) 2. Max Verstappen (+1.6s) 3. Kimi Antonelli (+1.9s, just 0.375s behind Verstappen) Perhaps the biggest positive for Verstappen wasn’t just second place—it was that, for the first time in 2026, Red Bull appeared to have a car capable of genuinely challenging Mercedes on pure pace. Both Verstappen and team principal Laurent Mekies described the Austrian upgrades as a significant step forward, even though there were still some remaining balance issues.

Fernando Alonso started 21st for the 2026 Monaco Grand Prix after a very difficult qualifying session, but he ultimately ended up with 10th place and Aston Martin’s first point of the season. The climb wasn’t due to a series of on-track overtakes alone. It came from a combination of race attrition and late-race drama: * A chaotic race: Monaco featured multiple incidents, retirements, and interruptions, which naturally moved Alonso up the order. * He stayed in the race: Alonso himself said Aston Martin didn’t have the pace, so the strategy was largely about surviving and capitalizing on opportunities rather than charging through the field. * Late restart gains: Sergio Pérez made up several positions after a restart and crossed the line in a provisional P10, while Alonso was behind him. * Post-race penalty: Pérez was investigated for a false start during the restart and received a 10-second penalty, dropping him from P10 to P15. That promoted Alonso into 10th, giving Aston Martin its first championship point of 2026. So, while Alonso effectively went from P21 on the grid to a points finish, the final step from P11 to P10 happened after the race because of Pérez’s penalty rather than an overtake on track.

That 58-race streak unbeaten by a teammate in races where both cars finished is not just luck—it is the result of several factors working together. 1. Verstappen almost never has an “off day” Most top drivers occasionally lose to their teammate through mistakes, poor tyre management, bad starts, or racecraft errors. Verstappen’s race execution is exceptionally consistent: * Rarely makes driving mistakes * Usually maximizes tyre life * Excellent at race pace over long stints * Strong in changing conditions * Very good at overtaking and defending As a result, if both Red Bulls reach the finish, his teammate generally needs to be genuinely faster to beat him—and that almost never happens. 2. Red Bull’s car philosophy tends to suit him Several former teammates (notably Pierre Gasly, Alex Albon and Sergio Pérez) struggled with the sharp front-end balance that Verstappen prefers. Verstappen likes a car that: * Turns aggressively into corners * Has a very responsive front axle * Can feel nervous at the rear Many drivers find that setup difficult to drive consistently over a race distance. Red Bull engineers often optimize around the fastest driver, which naturally pushes development toward Verstappen’s preferences. 3. Reliability removes many chances for teammates The statistic is specifically “when both drivers finish.” Many historical teammate victories happen because: * One driver has damage * A poor strategy * A mechanical issue * A penalty By excluding retirements, you’re looking almost purely at pace and race execution. In that scenario Verstappen’s advantage becomes much more obvious. 5. The psychological effect is huge Every Red Bull teammate knows: * Verstappen is the team’s benchmark * Previous teammates struggled badly * Their performance is compared directly with his every weekend That pressure can lead drivers to: * Overdrive the car * Take excessive setup risks * Make more mistakes in qualifying and races Once a driver falls behind, the confidence gap often widens. How remarkable is 58 races? It’s extraordinarily rare in modern F1. Even legends such as: * Lewis Hamilton * Michael Schumacher * Ayrton Senna were beaten by teammates far more frequently over comparable stretches.

Oh take me back to AD25 || Max Verstappen Abu Dhabi 2025 pole lap

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