Max Verstappen was livid at the Hungarian GP, owing to a strategy call that let him get undercut twice by Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. However, former McLaren mechanic Marc Priestley felt that Verstappen was just frustrated with Red Bull’s lack of pace.
After dominating 2022 and 2023, Verstappen’s current campaign has taken a turn for the worse in the last few races. Red Bull doesn’t have the fastest car anymore and the three-time champion is struggling to fight for wins.
“He was frustrated all day,” Priestley said on BBC’s F1: Chequered Flag podcast. “And I do think it spilled over. [But] the frustration came from the fact that he was slow”.
Priestley’s statement was in response to a question about Verstappen‘s collision with Hamilton. The Dutchman made an attempt to pass Hamilton on lap 63 down at turn one, but he locked up, made contact with the Mercedes driver, and dropped down to fifth place.
“It’s not a situation he is used to being in,” Priestley added.
The former McLaren mechanic understood why many would label him as a “petulant kid” but he insisted that it was difficult for Verstappen to see others comfortably winning races, whereas he is having to work hard and chase the pack.
Priestley points out Red Bull’s mistakes
Priestley also said that Red Bull uncharacteristically made several mistakes at the Hungarian GP. “They got some of their calls wrong. When they review it, I’m pretty sure that’s what they’ll find”.
On the other hand, the 47-year-old feels that Verstappen should have kept his calm. His team heard him out when he complained about the strategy, so an audacious divebomb down the inside of Hamilton’s car was unnecessary.
VERSTAPPEN HAMILTON
A big hit which sent the Red Bull flying and ultimately ended the fight for P3 #F1 #HungarianGP pic.twitter.com/I7K2Nu5sgG
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 21, 2024
Had Verstappen remained calm, he could have overtaken Hamilton on pure pace to finish P3, instead of finishing P5. To make matters worse, Lando Norris reduced the gap to him in the Drivers’ Championship, as did McLaren in the Constructors’.
