A forgettable weekend
Red Bull endured a tough weekend in China, scoring just four points across the Sprint and Grand Prix. After the smiles in Melbourne, with a third-place qualifying and Verstappen’s race comeback, the team faced the inevitable frowns following a weekend where they were decisively beaten by Haas and even the junior Racing Bulls team.
In Shanghai, the difficulties continued with a race retirement, this time for Max Verstappen. He was called into the pits while running in sixth place due to a cooling system issue affecting the hybrid component of the RB22’s power unit. Meanwhile, Isack Hadjar spun during the opening lap while battling Oliver Bearman, ultimately finishing the GP in eighth place, behind both Pierre Gasly and Liam Lawson.
36 laps of unnecessary lift and coast
Additionally, the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport highlighted, through a careful analysis of radio communications, that during the China GP, Max Verstappen spent 36 laps approaching turn 6 using lift-and-coast unnecessarily. The Red Bull pit wall did not intervene to correct this setting, which was also applied at other points on the track, such as turn 1 and turn 14, following team instructions.
On lap 36, engineer Gianpiero Lambiase told Verstappen that the area where he was losing most time compared to Oliver Bearman ahead was turn 6. At that point, Verstappen realized he had been lifting unnecessarily. “I’ve been off the throttle for half the race. Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Verstappen exclaimed over the radio. “I’m on your side, Max. I’m trying to help you and give you information. Nothing more,” Lambiase replied in response to the Dutchman’s frustration.
Red Bull’s early 2026 struggles
In short, it was another setback for Red Bull, a team that still has a lot of work to do to recover a 2026 season that initially looked promising. At the moment, Milton Keynes’ squad finds itself far behind Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren, highlighting the gap that must be closed if they hope to compete for victories this year.
As the paddock moves toward the next round, the focus won’t just be on the hybrid cooling fixes, but on mending the procedural cracks that allowed a world-class driver to “coast” through 36 laps of a Grand Prix. In a sport where milliseconds define careers, a misunderstanding of this scale suggests a team that is currently lost in the technical complexity of the 2026 power units.
The road back to the podium will require more than just aerodynamic upgrades; it will require a return to the clinical operational excellence that once made Red Bull untouchable. For now, however, the “Long Game” seems to be getting shorter by the day as their rivals pull further ahead in the standings.
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