Max Verstappen Vents His Anger At Red Bull After Saudi Arabian Grand Prix Disaster

In a thrilling display at the recent Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, current 2023 leader Max Verstappen fought his way from P15 to an impressive second-place finish behind only his teammate Sergio Perez. While many applauded the Dutchman's incredible comeback, Verstappen himself was far from satisfied with the outcome, expressing frustration with Red Bull.

Prior to his driveshaft malfunction during Q2, Verstappen had consistently posted the fastest times at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. In fact, Q2 saw him place the fourth fastest lap time of the day, but the mechanical issue pushed him back down the grid. The exceptional pace led many to believe he would secure pole position and ultimately emerge victorious despite the potential DRS trains of the track. Despite his setback, expectations remained high for Verstappen to take home the win.

Teammate Perez Outpaces Verstappen to Victory

Easily overcoming most of his competitors, the 25-year-old driver met his match in teammate Sergio Pérez. The Mexican racer responded to Verstappen's pace, ultimately securing the top spot on the podium. Although a second-place finish is a noteworthy accomplishment, Verstappen urged his team to improve, stating, "I should have won."

In a candid interview with Viaplay, Verstappen emphasized the need for better team performance, saying:

"We need to do better as a team, we can't have problems like these." He also expressed disappointment with the race's outcome:

“Otherwise this would have been a very different race for me. At the end we limited the damage a little bit, but I should have won here.”

Verstappen Calls for Enhanced Red Bull Reliability

During the post-race press conference, Verstappen reiterated his dissatisfaction with finishing second, urging Red Bull to ensure the reliability of both his and Pérez's vehicles.

“Everyone is happy but personally, I’m not happy because I’m not here to be second,” he said said.

“When you’re fighting for a championship and especially when it looks like it’s just between two cars, we have to make sure that also the two cars are reliable.”

With Max taking the fastest lap, he maintains his place at the top of the Driver Standings, but if reliability does become an issue for the Milton Keynes crew, how long he can stay there remains to be seen.