F1 News: Max Verstappen reveals reason for heartbreaking Dutch Grand Prix crash

A compsite image of a disappointed Max Verstappen with a Dutch themed background — Photo: © IMAGO

Dutch Grand Prix

Max Verstappen reveals reason for heartbreaking Dutch Grand Prix crash

An awful way to say goodbye to his home race

Chris Deeley Editor

Experienced sports writer covering F1 and other motorsports since 2023

Sunday 23 August 2026 18:22 Updated: 09:42

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Max Verstappen has explained his massive crash on the first lap of the Dutch Grand Prix on Sunday.

The dramatic incident at the damp final corner of the track ended his race on the spot and brought out a 30-minute long red flag, a sad end to the four-time world champion's final home race.

Verstappen explained to the media after the race that he may have hit the throttle too early after seeing a dry patch of track coming up, admitting he 'got caught out'.

The Dutchman also revealed that the impact of the crash didn't reach the 15G threshold at which drivers are required to go to the medical centre, but admitted he didn't ask for the details of the reading.

F1 RESULTS: Full times, finishing positions and penalties from Dutch Grand Prix

Verstappen: I've had worse crashes

"I got caught out," he said of the incident. "It was still quite wet in that corner and then as soon as I saw the dry patch coming, I was like, now you can accelerate but clearly that didn't work so probably was still a bit too early."

He added: "It was a decent hit, but I've had worse... I didn't ask (for the G-Force reading). I just asked, can I not go to the medical centre? And they were like, 'It's still below the threshold, so sorry'."

Verstappen was starting from the fourth row of the grid after a weekend of struggling for pace throughout the sprint shenanigans and qualifying, and called the weekend as a whole 'disappointing'.

"Well, I think overall, we had a disappointing weekend, pace wise," he said. "We just couldn't really fight with the guys ahead so that's probably the most disappointing part.

"I wish that I could have done a little bit more in the race, but looking at the pace that we are showing I don't think it was really possible anyway, but still would have liked to race. Still would have liked to try and do a good job, but hopefully in Monza we can be a little bit more competitive."