Max Verstappen believes Red Bull still needs greater consistency despite the progress made with the RB22 during the first half of the 2026 Formula 1 season. With the team gradually closing the gap to the leaders and Verstappen regularly challenging near the front, the four-time world champion has nevertheless offered a cautious assessment ahead of the second half of the campaign.
Despite finishing only 54 seconds behind George Russell at the Belgian Grand Prix and Red Bull’s progressive improvement, Max Verstappen remains unconvinced by the team’s overall level of performance heading into the summer break. For the Dutchman, isolated strong results are not enough: Red Bull needs to become competitive throughout an entire Grand Prix weekend.
Max Verstappen wants more consistency from Red Bull
A fourth podium of the season and Red Bull’s ability to remain regularly involved in the battle for pole position are encouraging signs for the remainder of the championship.
Max Verstappen, however, is not getting carried away. He believes the biggest challenge is ensuring that Red Bull can maintain its performance level rather than experiencing significant fluctuations from one session to another.
“We need to find better overall performance, because sometimes we lose performance over an entire weekend or even during the race itself.”
That inconsistency was evident again during the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend. Max Verstappen eventually produced a strong race result, but his frustration with events on track was also clear, including an unaired Hungary team-radio outburst involving the Racing Bulls drivers.
Red Bull has improved but Verstappen wants cleaner weekends
Max Verstappen’s message is therefore not simply about finding additional outright speed. He wants Red Bull to deliver more straightforward, stable weekends in which he can exploit the RB22’s potential without unexpected changes in competitiveness.
The team has nevertheless made progress as the season has developed. Red Bull has become increasingly competitive near the front, while the performances of Isack Hadjar have also strengthened the team’s overall position. The Frenchman’s development has become another important part of Red Bull’s campaign, with Isack Hadjar’s progress assessed at the 2026 F1 summer break.
For Max Verstappen, however, the standard remains extremely high. Occasional podiums and flashes of qualifying speed are encouraging, but the goal is to have a package that performs predictably from Friday practice through qualifying and the race.
Max Verstappen reflects on a difficult first half of 2026
Looking back at the season so far, Max Verstappen admitted that the overall picture has been challenging despite several encouraging moments.
“In general it has been really difficult,” he said. “There have been some positive moments, some bright moments, I would say, but overall it has been difficult.”
The summer break therefore provides Red Bull with an opportunity to assess the progress already made while addressing the inconsistency that continues to concern its lead driver.
The next challenge will come at Max Verstappen’s home event at Zandvoort, where Formula 1 returns after the shutdown for the 2026 Dutch Grand Prix weekend. For Red Bull, the objective will be to turn its recent flashes of competitiveness into the kind of solid, predictable performance Verstappen is demanding.
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