Max Verstappen wins and impresses at Monza. The Dutchman secured pole position (without a tow, by the way) and victory at the Italian Grand Prix through a consistent performance. The 20-second gap over McLaren is misleading. The Woking team pushed hard on strategy and later had to resolve internal issues after making a mistake during Norris’s pit stop.
That said, no matter how you look at it, Verstappen dominated in Italy. His Red Bull RB21, thanks also to upgrades brought to the track in Monza (including some changes to the floor and improvements to the front wing to better suit the layout), was the fastest car on track.
Much of the credit undoubtedly goes to the Dutchman. His qualities are indisputable, but Red Bull is not a ‘junk car,’ as some like to claim. Formula 1 is a sport where the car matters far more than the driver’s skills. No one can transform a standard road car into a race-winning machine purely through driving ability—not even Verstappen. Max adds that extra something, but he certainly doesn’t perform miracles. The gap with Tsunoda is far too large to be real.
Red Bull had the potential to be comfortably the second force in 2025
The potential of the RB21 is not what emerges from Yuki’s performance, nor solely from Verstappen’s car. What is certain, however, is that this Red Bull is by no means a ‘junk car.’ Even Helmut Marko, the team advisor, appeared unusually positive after the race. The upgrades worked, and the car has grown in competitiveness. McLaren is a completely different level, he said, but the engineers managed to put a top-tier car in Max’s hands (even removing part of the rear wing during FP3 to give him more speed).
Calling the RB21 a ‘junk car,’ based on Tsunoda’s results or a few races where Verstappen did not shine, gives a distorted view of Formula 1. Max has achieved three wins, four second-place finishes, and also took first in the Sprint at the Belgian GP. Such results don’t happen by chance. Considering that Red Bull is fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, 41 points behind Ferrari—essentially based on Verstappen’s results—if Tsunoda had been slightly more competitive, or if the team had a driver consistently scoring points, Red Bull would almost certainly be the second force in the championship on their own.
Max Verstappen doesn’t need to switch to the Racing Bulls to win GPs. He already has a top-level car in his hands, certainly better than the VCARB 02.
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