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Max Verstappen was far from happy during what was a difficult Sprint qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix.
On Friday afternoon, the 2026 Formula 1 season continued with Sprint qualifying taking place around the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Mercedes continued their dominance as George Russell secured Sprint pole ahead of teammate Kimi Antonelli and McLaren star Lando Norris.
Meanwhile, Oscar Piastri was fourth, with Lewis Hamilton fifth and Charles Leclerc sixth. Verstappen ended the session in seventh place, more than half a second slower than Russell.
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Max Verstappen blasts ‘horrendous’ Red Bull during Sprint qualifying
During Sprint qualifying, Verstappen was less than happy as he blasted the RB22 on multiple occasions on his team radio.
The Dutchman said: “Mate, the car is just f— on the rear. It’s just jumping.”
In a radio that was not broadcast, Verstappen said: “I struggled a lot with the car jumping. My feet are flying off the pedals, that’s why I can’t power out of all the corners. You need to check that, it’s horrendous.”
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Karun Chandhok explains what went wrong for Max Verstappen during SQ2
Although seventh is not what Verstappen was expecting, it could have been a lot worse as he was close to being knocked out of SQ2, after finishing that session in ninth.
Speaking during the break between SQ2 and SQ3, Sky Sports analyst Karun Chandhok noted that the car was not moving as well as Red Bull’s rivals.
As a result, the Dutchman did not have the confidence to fully attack the corners, which cost him a heap of time.
Chandhok said on Sky Sports F1: “Max was four-tenths slower in SQ2 than SQ1.
“The lap looked okay through the first couple of corners, but you saw vertical movement. The car didn’t look particularly compliant on curves.
“He didn’t get the apex as well-rounded at Turn 6, which tightened the line and had a knock-on effect. It was a little bumpy. The car is not moving as well as others.
“You can see his head bobbing around; it’s definitely not riding as well as the Ferrari or the Mercedes drivers. A little bit bumpy under braking.
“You can just see, his head is moving around more than other cars, it doesn’t give you the confidence to attack the entry, a really scrappy run through the final chicane, that would have cost him a heap of time.
“They’re going to have to do something before he goes out again.”
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