Verstappen calls for a discussion after Mexico: ‘Needs to behave better’

Verstappen won in Mexico ahead of Lewis Hamilton and newly crowned world champion Kimi Antonelli, but struggled with engine-braking issues during the Formula 1 race. He had also experienced problems in Austin. At the time, he said the engine provided too little braking in some corners and responded too aggressively at other times. As a result, he said, he was unable to find a rhythm.

After his victory in Mexico, Verstappen was asked what had caused the problems. He had no explanation, however. “It just happens at random moments. Yeah, I don’t know. To be honest, the engine decides for itself what it does,” the Dutchman said.

The four-time world champion does have an idea for addressing the issue before the next race. “Maybe I should have a chat with the engine before the race. Maybe it needs to behave itself a bit better,” Verstappen jokes. “Yeah, we don’t know. Sometimes it just happens. It’s not very consistent.”

Earlier in the weekend, Ayumu Iwasa had also reported problems with engine braking. The Japanese driver took over Verstappen’s car during FP1 and later said that the engine braking sometimes did not work properly. According to Iwasa, Red Bull had already anticipated the issue.

Verstappen also points to the high temperatures the car’s components were exposed to in Mexico, which may have made the problem worse. “Everything gets so hot here. It’s difficult to get everything exactly right for the turbo and all the surrounding components too,” the race winner concludes.