Can Max Verstappen and Red Bull still pull off the unexpected? After all, no one can question their pedigree. The Dutchman has been World Champion four times. And Red Bull has won the constructors’ title six times. And after that incredible run at Suzuka, it looked like the duo could still pull a rabbit out of the hat.
But after the disastrous Bahrain GP outing, a comeback is starting to look increasingly less likely. It was an awful weekend for Max Verstappen and Red Bull at the Sakhir International Circuit.
The RB21 showed it was yet to overcome its its performance and balance issues, and the reigning world champion could only manage a meagre P6 finish at the chequered flag.
After his heroics at the Japanese GP — which seem like an aberration now — the 27-year-old had brought himself back into title contention, as he was only a single point away from Lando Norris. But a miserable outing in Bahrain means he has lost ground in the drivers’ standings, slipping down to third.
It wasn’t just the car that gave the Dutchman headaches, but even his elite pit crew faltered massively. Verstappen suffered two excruciatingly long pit stops, which is quite costly in Sakhir, where the pit lane time loss is relatively high at 23 seconds. Naturally, it affected his chances to move up the field and challenge the likes of George Russell, Oscar Piastri, and Norris.
Red Bull team advisor Helmut Marko is definitely not happy and has come out with a scathing response to the team’s disastrous result and inefficient operational performance.
“If the car isn’t the fastest and then the pit stops don’t work, that’s not acceptable,” he said.
Max shaking his head after Red Bull butchered his pitstop…pic.twitter.com/hQq9uIAmLf
— Verstappen News (@verstappenews) April 13, 2025
According to the Austrian, there isn’t any light at the end of the tunnel for the Milton Keynes-based outfit as things stand. He explained that the team doesn’t expect to see any dramatic progress anytime soon — at least not until the European leg of the season kicks off.
But by then, Verstappen may lose a heap of points in the title battle. Nevertheless, it explains why the 27-year-old has been so pessimistic about his title chances this season, knowing that the RB21 won’t suddenly become a race-winning car.
2025 gremlins could cost Red Bull dearly, suggests Marko
The niggling issues on the RB21 aren’t just going to cost Red Bull results every weekend. Marko firmly believes that if the team cannot get on top of their balance issues, they run the risk of losing out in Verstappen’s title defense—something the Dutchman has innately accepted, or as it seems to be.
“With a performance like that, unfortunately, the World Championship won’t happen. We have to create a foundation with a car that will enable him to fight for the World Championship,” he added.
The 27-year-old being ruled out of a title fight this season can also have drastic ramifications for the team going into 2026. There is a growing feeling within the paddock that if Verstappen cannot bag his fifth world title this season, he will push for an exit from Red Bull.
This could turn out to be disastrous for the Austrian team going into the latest era of F1—with the team built strongly around the Dutchman. As for Verstappen, the likes of Aston Martin have reportedly shown strong interest in signing him. If such a deal goes through, he will be reunited with his title-winning Honda power units and Adrian Newey at Aston.
