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Red Bull driver Max Verstappen had a short but scathing verdict on the RB21 after his first run in the FP3 in the 2025 Bahrain GP. The Dutch driver had an underwhelming FP2 session on Friday after missing the FP1 session, with reserve driver Ayumu Iwasa taking over his car.
The four-time F1 world champion has looked close to the McLaren pair of Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in the first three races of the 2025 season. However, the Red Bull driver was over eight-tenths behind Piastri's fastest time in the most representative practice session of the weekend.
Many had hoped that the Austrian team would make gains overnight and close the gap to the reigning world champions. However, when Max Verstappen took his RB21 to the track in the FP3 session, he was shocked by the balance.
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The 27-year-old came on the team radio to express his frustration over the performance of the RB21 and have a damning four-word reaction, saying:
"Yeah, that's f***ing terrible," Verstappen remarked.
Max Verstappen went on to abandon the first run and ultimately finished the FP3 session in P8, one second behind the Aussie's flying lap.
Max Verstappen gives his review on the RB21 after FP2
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen believed he and the Austrian team were just "too slow" in comparison to McLaren at the Sakhir International Circuit. Speaking with F1.com after the FP2 session, he reflected on his Free Practice sessions and expressed his dissatisfaction with the run, saying:
“[It] took like one lap, two laps to get into it, but still the gap was quite massive, so [I’m] not entirely happy. [I was] just struggling a lot with grip, feeling in general. The balance wasn’t too bad but just, yeah, off, and quite a bit of work to do also in the long run."
"We’re just too slow basically every lap, and it was honestly not a lot of fun out there in the long run. A bit of drift practice at the end there as well!”
At the end of the 2025 Japanese Grand Prix, Max Verstappen made a light-hearted comment about his potential in the MCL39 if given the opportunity.
When asked about the Dutch driver's remark, McLaren team principal Andrea Stella told Sky Italia:
“I wonder what the Red Bull employees, who work for him, think. Sympathy for them. He’s very good on the track, in fact, he’s superb in the car, but he’s also competent in terms of communication. He’s good at throwing fuel on the fire.” (via PlanetF1).
Despite having a troubled car underneath him, Max Verstappen trails championship leader and McLaren driver Lando Norris by a single point after three races and one Sprint in the 2025 season. The four-time F1 champion enters Bahrain on the back of a win in Japan ahead of Norris.
