Major disappointment at Red Bull evident after Verstappen's Q3 crash in Austria

Verstappen crashed at the end of Q3 for the Austrian Grand Prix qualifying. In Turn 9, the Dutchman suddenly lost control of his RB22. Prior to the incident, Verstappen genuinely looked in contention for pole position. With a raft of updates on the car, the Red Bull Racing driver was on par with Mercedes and Ferrari.

Red Bull shared footage from the Austrian team’s garage on social media. The images show Red Bull’s mechanics. They watched Verstappen’s final run with bated breath, but this attempt at pole ultimately ended in the wall. The disappointment is clearly visible on the mechanics’ faces.

After qualifying, Verstappen spoke about his crash. The four-time world champion said he was very surprised by the moment his RB22 stepped out and that he suddenly lost all control of the car. Verstappen could not yet pinpoint a cause for the crash, but he did say they needed to look into the closing of his rear wing. Isack Hadjar, Verstappen’s teammate, said after the session that the crash likely indeed came down to the Red Bull’s rear wing.

Because of the crash, Verstappen got no further than P5 for the Austrian Grand Prix. George Russell ultimately secured pole position, although this seemed unclear for a moment right after the session. The Briton set the time after Verstappen’s crash. The FIA stated that Russell had lifted sufficiently, and so the lap was valid.