BUDAPEST (Reuters) – Max Verstappen said Red Bull had to do a better job after his hopes of a third Hungarian Grand Prix win in a row ended with fifth place following a late collision with old foe Lewis Hamilton.
The triple champion still has a healthy lead in the standings, 76 points clear of McLaren’s Lando Norris who finished second to Australian teammate and first time winner Oscar Piastri.
“Of course I’m not happy,” the Dutch driver told Sky Sports television.
“On a day when we’re already lacking pace compared to McLaren you try and hope we do the right things with the strategy which today was not the case.”
Verstappen’s radio exchanges with his race engineer were robust and littered with complaints and swearing.
“I don’t think we need to apologise,” he said. “I just think we need to do a better job.
“I don’t know why people think you cannot be vocal on a radio. This is a sport. If some people don’t like that then stay home.”
Verstappen said Red Bull could no longer rely on a pace advantage, unlike last year when they won all but one of 22 races.
“Naturally that frustrates me because I want things to be done better. I’m realistic. Today we couldn’t have beaten the McLarens, but a P3 was on the cards if we would have been on it a bit more,” he said.
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Christian Radnedge)
