Max Verstappen’s Red Bull troubles have continued

Max Verstappen endured a thoroughly miserable sprint qualifying session at the Chinese Grand Prix, finishing a remarkable 1.7 seconds adrift of George Russell, who secured pole position for Mercedes.

The four-time world champion could manage only eighth place on the grid for Saturday’s 19-lap sprint race at the Shanghai International Circuit.

Verstappen was unsparing in his assessment of proceedings. “The whole day has been a disaster, pace-wise,” he stated.

The Dutchman found himself outpaced not only by both Mercedes and Ferrari drivers, but also by the McLarens and Alpine’s Pierre Gasly, underlining the severity of Red Bull’s struggles.

Max Verstappen was furious after his sprint race at the Chinese GP

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Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies took to the radio following the session’s conclusion to offer his apologies to the beleaguered Verstappen.

“Sorry Max,” Mekies said. “Tough one. A lot to learn. Thankfully, the weekend is still long. We need to learn from it, so let’s try again.”

The team had already weathered an anxious moment during SQ2, where both Verstappen and teammate Isack Hadjar found themselves languishing in ninth and tenth positions respectively.

Verstappen elaborated on the fundamental issues plaguing his RB22. “No grip, no balance, just losing massive amounts of time in the corners,” he explained.

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies admitted mistakes were made

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Speaking to Viaplay, Mekies expanded upon the technical difficulties that had beset the team throughout the day.

“It’s been very difficult here from the very first laps,” he acknowledged. “We couldn’t get the car to work in its proper windows.”

The team principal revealed that numerous minor problems had accumulated to undermine their performance aspirations.

“A lot of small issues which, added together, have taken us away from the performance we were hoping to have,” Mekies noted.

The deficit to their rivals had grown substantially since the Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne’s Albert Park just days earlier, leaving Red Bull searching for answers about what had gone awry.

Red Bull are now looking for answers just days before the Chinese Grand Prix

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Hadjar’s afternoon proved equally troublesome, with the 21-year-old Frenchman scraping into SQ3 by a mere 0.015 seconds ahead of Audi’s Nico Hulkenberg before ultimately finishing tenth.

The Red Bull newcomer ended nearly half a second behind his illustrious teammate and was beaten by Ollie Bearman in the Haas.

“We need a bit more of everything,” Hadjar reflected. “More grip, a bit more power.”

The young driver expressed surprise at how the competitive picture had shifted since Melbourne. “I was expecting McLaren and Ferrari to be ahead, but I didn’t expect the gap overall to increase,” he admitted.