Max Verstappen stokes Red Bull F1 tension after major disagreement

Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen stokes Red Bull F1 tension after major disagreement

Verstappen disagreed with his team

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Monday 25 May 2026 20:57

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F1 champion Max Verstappen revealed a disagreement with Red Bull during qualifying at the Canadian Grand Prix.

Red Bull were once again behind their rivals McLaren and Ferrari in Montreal, with Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar qualifying sixth and seventh respectively.

Speaking to the media after the session, Verstappen complained about the lack of grip and top speed in his Red Bull, and also the set-up direction the team went in.

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The same changes were not made to team-mate Hadjar's car, however, and Verstappen discussed how unhappy he was with the changes to his own car.

Verstappen and Red Bull disagree

Verstappen explained: “We did something different with my car, that’s what the team wanted. Clearly, that doesn’t work the way it should. But sometimes you also have to let the team do their thing and make clear that it doesn’t work. I said, ‘Go ahead, if you think this is going to work, then do it.’ And clearly, it doesn’t work.”

“I’ve pointed it out so many times already, but sometimes you just have to let them feel for themselves that it doesn’t work.”

“Of course they listen to me very often, but not this time, because they were convinced that it was going to work.”

Verstappen further elaborated on why a different choice was made between his and Hadjar's car, and added: “That’s because they wanted to try it with me, that has been the case for years. A driver can also say, ‘Just leave it as it is because it already feels reasonably okay,’ but for me it didn’t feel okay beforehand and it still doesn’t. I’m not easily satisfied with a car. I want to fight for victory, not for seventh place.”

“It’s obvious, isn’t it? The whole qualifying session was going nowhere. I always stay reasonably calm about it, but hopefully now they know that it doesn’t work.”

When asked if this won't happen during other race weekends, Verstappen responded: "Yeah, I think that’s pretty clear.”

F1 Red Bull Max Verstappen Isack Hadjar