Max Verstappen has reached the Formula 1 summer break with one clear conclusion about the Red Bull RB22: the problem is not simply a lack of speed, but its unpredictability. The car can improve and then regress, sometimes changing behaviour from one session to the next. Technical director Pierre Waché has now identified two structural weaknesses at the heart of that inconsistency: corner-entry stability and mid-corner understeer.
Those are the areas Red Bull must address if it wants to produce a more convincing recovery during the second half of the 2026 season. Although the team has made substantial progress since its difficult opening races, Max Verstappen still does not feel he can rely on the car to behave consistently throughout an entire weekend.
Max Verstappen wants a more predictable Red Bull RB22
Max Verstappen enters the summer break a long way behind the leader in the Formula 1 driver standings, making it extremely difficult to imagine a recovery like the one he produced last season, when he stood on the podium at every Grand Prix from Zandvoort onwards.
This time, however, Red Bull’s problem is different. The RB22 is not simply behind its main rivals in outright performance; its competitiveness has fluctuated significantly from weekend to weekend and even between sessions at the same circuit.
Red Bull had anticipated a difficult start to the year, particularly because of uncertainty surrounding its new power unit. That part of the package ultimately proved surprisingly competitive, while the chassis displayed more obvious shortcomings, compounded by the RB22’s excessive weight.
According to PaceTeq data, Red Bull’s race-pace deficit was more than 1.3 seconds per lap in Australia and China. By Belgium and Hungary, that gap had been reduced to around two tenths, highlighting the scale of the team’s progress.
Max Verstappen, however, is reluctant to rely only on those numbers. In Budapest, he openly described a deterioration in the car’s performance as the weekend progressed, with the RB22 sometimes becoming less competitive even within the same session.
“Sometimes we just lose performance over a weekend, or even from the beginning to the end of the race,” Max Verstappen explained.
Asked to summarise his first half of the season, his answer was simple: “Tough.”
For Max Verstappen, Red Bull therefore needs to become more consistent. Finding additional outright performance remains essential, but so does preventing the car from unexpectedly changing behaviour without an obvious reason.
Pierre Waché identifies two key Red Bull RB22 weaknesses
While Max Verstappen is demanding greater predictability, Pierre Waché has identified two specific characteristics that continue to restrict what Red Bull’s drivers can extract from the RB22.
Corner-entry instability is one problem, while mid-corner understeer is the other. Together, they affect not only how aggressively the drivers can set up and load the car, but also the confidence they have when approaching its limit.
“We have some limitations in terms of stability on corner entry and mid-corner understeer,” Pierre Waché explained to Autosport.
The latter characteristic is particularly unwelcome for Max Verstappen, who strongly dislikes understeer. Isack Hadjar has also identified corner-entry stability as the biggest issue from his perspective.
“We need to solve that, then we can improve the rest,” Isack Hadjar said.
The feedback shows that although Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar may extract performance from the RB22 differently, there are fundamental characteristics both drivers want Red Bull to address. The Dutchman’s performances remain a major reference point for the team, with the latest developments around him available in the Max Verstappen section.
Red Bull has recovered aerodynamic performance since early 2026
Pierre Waché also acknowledged that Red Bull started the season with an aerodynamic deficit compared with its main rivals. The RB22 lacked downforce, while several mechanical problems made it harder for the drivers to understand what the car was doing through the steering.
“It took us a little bit of time, but in the end we managed to close the deficit and exploit the potential of the car,” Pierre Waché said.
That improvement explains why Red Bull has moved much closer to the front compared with its early-season struggles. Yet closing the raw performance deficit does not automatically solve the confidence problem faced by the drivers.
The sensation they receive from the car remains a critical development area. If the RB22 reacts inconsistently on corner entry or develops too much understeer through the middle of the corner, Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar cannot exploit the available aerodynamic load with complete confidence.
Zandvoort begins a crucial second half for Verstappen and Red Bull
Red Bull’s next opportunity to assess its progress will come at Zandvoort, where Formula 1 resumes after the summer break. The Dutch circuit’s banked corners and demanding sequences should provide another revealing examination of the RB22’s balance and stability.
It will also be an emotionally significant weekend for Max Verstappen, who has already unveiled a special helmet for the final Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort.
Red Bull has already made major gains compared with Australia and China, but the task for the second half of 2026 is no longer simply to find more downforce. Pierre Waché’s comments point towards a more fundamental objective: giving the drivers a car whose behaviour they can predict from corner entry through the apex.
For Max Verstappen, that may be the difference between occasionally extracting an unexpected result and having a Red Bull he can genuinely trust again. The RB22 has become faster; now it needs to become consistent.
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