Unfathomable Red Bull blunder Verstappen knew nothing about, left F1 champion dumbfounded
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A filmmaker with a soft spot for Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve, Mika Hakkinen and above all, Tazio Nuvolari and Ayrton Senna, is also a diehard Formula One fan since the age of 4 (mid-90's). An avid researcher of the past of Grand Prix Racing since before it was even named F1, and with a thirst for knowledge of the ins and outs of the actuality of the sport, as well as for the technical aspects that define it, is a member of GPblog since 2023, where he has put his love of racing to good use.
Mika Hakkinen, F1 world champion with McLaren cannot comprehend how Red Bull Racing didn't let Max Verstappen know of the strategic decision that would derail his Spanish Grand Prix.
As Andrea Kimi Antonelli lept out of his stricken Mercedes in the latter stages of the Grand Prix in Montmeló, a Safety Car was triggered which prompted pitstops for most of the drivers.
For Red Bull, they were stuck between a rock and a hard place as due to their aggressive three-stop strategy left them only with a used set of softs, as used as the ones Verstappen had on, and a fresh set of hards which had been discarded by the teams as an option to use in the race.
Max Verstappen exiting his Red Bull Racing RB21 after the Spanish Grand Prix
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Hakkinen can't fathom Red Bull keeping Verstappen in the dark
As Verstappen emerged from the pits, the Dutchman immediately reach out to the pitwall on the radio vehemently questioning the decision to put him on hards.
“I was very surprised about that question,” the F1 champion said in the Drive to Wynn podcast. “Normally, the driver knows exactly what tyres he has and the condition of the tyres when they’re going to put them on the car during a race."
Did the team choose to leave Verstappen in the dark regarding the tyre availability to ensure the Dutchman came into the pits for fresh rubber? Mere speculation. However the forced strategic decision would ultimately result in severe frustration for the defending champion, something Hakkinen saw coming.
“When I saw them putting the hard tyres on Max, I thought, ‘This is not going to end up nicely, he’s going to struggle, he can’t get the temperature, he’s going to slide everywhere and everybody is just going to be coming left, right and centre overtaking him’.”
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Today GPblog reported that Christian Horner, Red Bull Racing's team principal, has been sidelined and that his time at Red Bull may indeed come to an end after all. Can this move mark the beginning of the turn of the tide at the Austrian outfit?
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