Jos Verstappen: 'Honda engine for next year is already better'

With the retirement of Max Verstappen on Sunday at Imola, it was his father Jos Verstappen who joined Peptalk at Ziggo Sport via Facetime. This is to look back at the race of last Sunday. Verstappen states that the risk of a blowout always exists, but that it was simply "s**t" that the Dutch Red Bull driver dropped out.

Year written off

"It sucks. Not really something you expect either," begins Verstappen. "You know it can always happen and luckily it happened in a good place where he didn't hit anything. If it happened four corners later it could have looked very different. Just messed up," but nothing to be done and on and on, because there is still some work to be done for Verstappen this season.

This applies especially to possible podium finishes and points, because he can't become a champion anymore and the constructors' title has already been awarded. As far as the big ambitions are concerned the season has been written off and it is also a difficult season, which Jos Verstappen agrees with. "A difficult season, we have now lost four times and three times in Italy. And Austria, in the first race."

Already a better engine

Apart from the car, the power source must of course also be of above-average quality if Verstappen is to be able to challenge Mercedes next year. His father could already say something about that and that is also good news for Red Bull. "Of course there are new opportunities for next year. We really need to improve the car, but also the engine."

"I know there will be a new engine for next year from Honda, it's already better than what we're driving now. So in that area it looks positive, but yes, the others are not standing still either, we know, so it is always waiting until we have the new car," Verstappen adds.