Formula 1 Chinese GP
Max Verstappen: “Everything that could go wrong went wrong" in Chinese GP sprint
The Red Bull world champion failed to score points in the Shanghai sprint race
Edited: Mar 14, 2026, 7:11 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Lars Baron / Getty Images
Max Verstappen was left with very few words after failing to score points in the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race, which continued a frustrating start to the 2026 Formula 1 campaign.
The four-time world champion finished ninth in the shortened contest at Shanghai, 0.3s behind the final points scorer Oliver Bearman, with problems from start to finish.
Read Also:
Verstappen had qualified eighth, 1.7s off polesitter George Russell, claiming that his Red Bull was struggling for pace all over with “no grip, no balance, just losing massive amounts of time in the corners”.
A poor start then made matters worse as the Dutchman struggled for revs off the line, which initially dropped him to 13th, and Verstappen was simply unable to perform a comeback similar to last weekend.
At the Melbourne season opener he started 20th due to a Q1 crash but ultimately recovered to sixth, with Red Bull in a fight against McLaren for third in the pecking order behind Mercedes and Ferrari.
“I have not a lot of words at the moment, to be honest,” Verstappen told Sky Sports. “Everything that could go wrong went wrong. Start, of course, is one problem that we have to fix, but then after that the balance is all over the place.
“Probably the highest degradation of everyone out there, which is just uncontrollable. Plus some other bits on the car that were not, I would say, well prepared. We just need to get our stuff together.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Andy Hone/ LAT Images via Getty Images
It was the first time that Verstappen had finished a sprint race outside of the points, as his 13 Saturday wins is 10 more than any other driver in the shortened contests.
So when he was then asked if he was surprised by the problems this weekend, Verstappen replied: “Yes, a little bit more than expected.”
The problems were present across both Red Bull cars though, as Verstappen’s team-mate Isack Hadjar qualified 10th but finished 15th following a lap-one incident with Kimi Antonelli.
The Mercedes driver suffered a start similar to Verstappen’s, which dropped him from second to ninth and, attempting to fight back, he understeered into Hadjar at the Turn 6 hairpin.
“Everything went to plan for the first sector and then Kimi completely outbraked himself and we had damage for the remainder of the race,” said Hadjar, who retired on his Red Bull debut last weekend after impressing with third in qualifying.
“So it was a bit painful to drive. We didn't learn anything. I had damage and I was defending against faster cars the whole way. It was annoying.”
Photos from Chinese GP - Saturday
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Chinese GP - Saturday, in photos
Formula 1
68
Read Also:
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Jacques Villeneuve: Max Verstappen 'not in the right mental space' as Red Bull frustration grows
Next article Why Ferrari is fighting F1 start rule changes – and can they still lose?
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Max Verstappen
Red Bull reveals when 'silly' problems affecting Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar can be fixed
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
14 h
Red Bull reveals when 'silly' problems affecting Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar can be fixed
Max Verstappen pinpoints two recurring Red Bull problems: "We should use sign language!"
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
Max Verstappen pinpoints two recurring Red Bull problems: "We should use sign language!"
More from
Red Bull Racing
Max Verstappen puzzled by Q3 grip loss, but Austin shows how far Red Bull has progressed
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
Max Verstappen puzzled by Q3 grip loss, but Austin shows how far Red Bull has progressed
Max Verstappen reacts to COTA boss: "He can drive my car, after five laps he won't be able to walk"
Formula 1
Formula 1
United States GP
Max Verstappen reacts to COTA boss: "He can drive my car, after five laps he won't be able to walk"
Latest news
Carson Hocevar credits tow truck driver for saving his race at Talladega
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Talladega II
1 h
Carson Hocevar credits tow truck driver for saving his race at Talladega
Brad Keselowski to address questions about NASCAR future and RFK exit at Martinsville
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Martinsville II
3 h
Brad Keselowski to address questions about NASCAR future and RFK exit at Martinsville
Hamlin says Chevy teams 'suck at the teat' of Hendrick on superspeedways
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Talladega II
6 h
Hamlin says Chevy teams 'suck at the teat' of Hendrick on superspeedways
Valtteri Bottas denies he might lose his Cadillac seat for F1 2027
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
6 h
Valtteri Bottas denies he might lose his Cadillac seat for F1 2027
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe