Red Bull admits Verstappen's car degradation issue is 'complex' and may last into 2027

Max Verstappen has repeatedly complained that his Red Bull loses performance over a session or race, and now team principal Laurent Mekies has confirmed the issue is real and long-running. The RB22's rear axle degradation, which Verstappen described as 'a car made of paper' at Monza, remains unresolved and could take until 2027 to fully fix.

Why it matters:

This isn't just a setup gripe — it's a structural flaw that has undermined Red Bull for multiple seasons. With Verstappen already out of the title fight in 2026, it also threatens his remarkable streak of winning at least one Grand Prix every year since 2016, a run that could end this season if the problem keeps recurring.

The details:

• Years in the making: Verstappen says he has been raising the issue internally for years, even as the 2026 car arrived with completely new regulations.
• Acknowledged by Red Bull: Mekies told Motorsport.com that Verstappen is right about performance degradation through sessions and races. "It's not a new issue," he said. "We are not sleeping on it."
• Complex to solve: "Obviously, I consider it a complex issue. Otherwise, we would get to the bottom of it," Mekies added. The team is making "small steps" but doesn't have all the solutions yet.
• Some progress: Lessons learned from Monza were applied in Madrid, where the problem didn't appear to the same extent. But Mekies warned it "will never be the full picture."
• Limited by regulations: The budget cap and the team's focus shifting to the 2027 car mean the RB22 cannot receive major changes this season.

What's next:

Mekies admits the issue could surface again in the remaining races. For Verstappen, that could mean a first winless season since 2015, when he was still at Toro Rosso. Bigger chassis changes are likely needed for 2027, but the team insists it is finally on the right path. "That's serious lap time," Mekies said. "There is no doubt that we have everyone trying to improve that for the future."