Ted Kravitz thinks Red Bull owner may be embarrassed by one thing he saw first-hand at the Austrian Grand Prix

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Max Verstappen matched his poorest qualifying result of the 2025 season at the Austrian Grand Prix. It was the worst possible timing at Red Bull’s home race.

Verstappen was compromised on his final lap in Q3 as Pierre Gasly’s spin brought out yellow flags. But the Dutchman hadn’t been optimistic regardless.

He reported earlier in qualifying that the car was ‘completely undrivable’. Red Bull were confident he had an outside chance of pole after practice, but with ‘no grip’, he could only manage seventh.

Verstappen also started on the fourth row at the Bahrain GP in April. To compound the team’s misery, Yuki Tsunoda was eliminated in Q1.

Mark Mateschitz sees Racing Bulls’ superior handling at the Austrian Grand Prix

Red Bull owner Mark Mateschitz is in attendance this weekend. He also joined the team for their 400th race at Imola.

But he rather embarrassingly saw Red Bull upstaged by their sister team Racing Bulls. Like Verstappen, Tsunoda complained that he had ‘no front grip’.

The RB21’s handling issues resurfaced, with the Racing Bulls car looking much easier to drive. Isack Hadjar reached Q2, while Liam Lawson superbly outqualified Verstappen in P6.

Sky Sports analyst Ted Kravitz said during the session: “Mark Mateschitz might reflect that the Racing Bulls, his other team, have got the easier handling car here, and must be nicer to drive, hence Hadjar and Lawson’s great performances in Q1.”

Yuki Tsunoda’s defiant Red Bull claim before Austria has aged poorly

Verstappen’s miserable Saturday comes amid renewed speculation over his future. One would not be surprised if Mateschitz engaged him in talks this weekend.

After all, Verstappen will be able to trigger an exit clause in his contract as early as next week. Toto Wolff and George Russell have both confirmed that Mercedes are in discussions over a move.

Meanwhile, Tsunoda is ‘certain’ to leave at the end of the season barring a major improvement. He starts from 18th for the second successive race.

On Thursday, Tsunoda said his driving style was similar to Verstappen, which meant he should be able to compete with the Dutchman when he became more comfortable in the car. But that confidence is arguably looking misplaced.