Verstappen backtracks on radio rant

Max Verstappen has backtracked on the expletive-laden rant with which he met his retirement from the Hungarian Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver was enraged when he was forced to pull over on just the fifth lap after the MGU-K in his Renault power unit failed.

As he trundled to a halt, Verstappen shouted over team radio: "I don't care if the engine blows up, fuck it! What a fucking joke all the fucking time with this shit, honestly!"

VIDEO: Verstappen's FURIOUS uncensored team radio

Renault boss Cyril Abiteboul has typically been diplomatic in the face of criticism from Red Bull, but came out swinging in Budapest, pointing out that the customer team had refused to take an upgraded MGU-K and saying the French team's chiefs had stopped listening to complaints from Red Bull team principal Christian Horner "in 2015".

The divorce between Renault and Red Bull looks like heading for a messy end, with Daniel Ricciardo and Verstappen falling adrift of Mercedes and Ferrari in the standings, but the Dutchman perhaps offered an olive branch the day after the race.

"Looking back on yesterday the disappointment is still there," he wrote on Instagram.

"However, I should not have used the words I did in the heat of the moment. Emotions were running high after a good start to the race.

"These frustrations came for a reason, after another unexpected engine failure which have been happening too often over the past few years.

"We came to Budapest with high expectations and not being able to be competitive made it hard to swallow for us. I will go into the summer break hoping we will be back stronger after it."