F1 | Red Bull and Max Verstappen frustrated by qualifying traffic in Singapore: “Thank your friend”. Max Verstappen’s Singapore GP qualifying was disrupted by traffic.

The end of Singapore GP qualifying saw a heated moment between Max Verstappen and the Red Bull pit wall. During his final flying lap, the Dutch driver’s performance was disrupted by traffic on track, which angered the team. A sharp message came over the team radio: “You can thank your friend for this. What bad luck,” clearly referring to the incident that ruined Verstappen’s attempt.

The world champion’s response was immediate: a furious expletive that reflected his frustration and showed how strongly he believed he could fight for pole position up to the very last sector.

Tension in the Red Bull garage after Verstappen misses pole because of… Norris

According to early reports, Lando Norris was the “culprit.” The McLaren driver, after completing a fast lap, was returning to the pits just as Verstappen approached behind him. By doing so, Lando Norris ended up in Verstappen’s trajectory, forcing him to lift off and compromising his final lap. This naturally fueled the frustration at Red Bull, who believed that without the obstruction, Max Verstappen could have closed the gap to pole time.

Despite the controversy, data analysis tells a slightly different story. Telemetry does not show Lando Norris’s McLaren having a decisive impact on Max Verstappen’s lap. In fact, it appears that Max Verstappen lost the racing line at the final chicane, which was the key factor affecting his lap time.

Nevertheless, Max Verstappen and Red Bull remain frustrated at a wasted opportunity. With recent technical updates making the car competitive again, second place on the grid—just behind George Russell—confirms the regained strength of the RB21. The front row keeps victory ambitions alive for the Singapore GP, but it also carries a hint of frustration over what could have been.