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Max Verstappen’s Red Bull is significantly over the weight limit at present, fuelling the Dutchman’s doubts about winning a race in 2026.
Verstappen is enduring one of the most frustrating weekends of his Red Bull career at the Chinese Grand Prix, having qualified down in eighth for both races. He failed to score in the Sprint as his fightback from a race-start glitch came up short in P9.
Laurent Mekies warned that Red Bull could struggle at the start of the new regulations, but the extent of their problems has caught Verstappen by surprise. He finished sixth in Australia last time out after a Q1 crash put him at the back of the grid.
What’s gone wrong for Red Bull?
Max Verstappen carrying 10kg of extra weight at Red Bull
Red Bull’s engine, the first they have ever built, is currently not performing at the level of the Mercedes and Ferrari power unit. That is to be expected.
But Verstappen also described his car’s handling as ‘awful’ after qualifying. He still managed to beat teammate Isack Hadjar, but only by a tenth – a smaller advantage than he typically enjoys.
As reported by F1-Insider, the Red Bull car is currently ‘around 10kg’ overweight. This is costing them three-tenths per lap, on top of the balance issues and horsepower deficit.
Ouch. How long will Red Bull need to catch Mercedes?
Red Bull aren’t the only team facing this problem. The Williams car is far heavier than it should be, while there is also talk that world champions McLaren need to shed weight.
As the first season of F1’s new era progress, Red Bull will inevitably eat into that three-tenths margin. But until they do, Verstappen is unlikely to compete at the front.
Why Max Verstappen doesn’t expect to win a race in 2026
In an interview with Viaplay in Shanghai, Verstappen was asked whether he could compete for race wins this year.
“Please don’t even mention that right now, when we’re 1.7 seconds behind,” he replied, a reference to the gap in Sprint qualifying.
Asked if it would be possible later in the season, he said: “No, that’s why I don’t even want to mention it, because there’s still so much that needs to happen on our side to even allow us to think about that for one second.”
Verstappen has won at least one race every single year since he joined Red Bull in 2016. That’s 10 seasons in a row – only Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton (15 apiece) have put together a longer streak.
The 28-year-old’s pessimism may be premature. The gap is enormous, but in-season development is arguably Red Bull’s greatest strength, as evidenced by Verstappen’s remarkable comeback last year.
The rate of progress will be higher than ever at the start of a new ruleset, particularly for a new engine manufacturer like Red Bull.
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