(Motorsport-Total.com) – Max Verstappen has explained the cause of his early retirement from the Monaco Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver had to abandon the race already on the first lap after his car showed significant problems immediately after the start.
Read more Curious finale in Monaco: Kimi Antonelli wins after race abandonment!
Verstappen had caused a surprise on Saturday. The four-time Formula 1 world champion had left both Ferrari drivers behind in qualifying and secured second place on the grid. Only Kimi Antonelli was faster on the street circuit and secured pole position.
However, Verstappen’s race was practically over just moments after the start lights went out. Over the radio, he reacted audibly frustrated immediately after the incident: “Yeah, great. Completely messed up. Guys, what the hell is this?”
Although Verstappen initially managed to get the car moving again, the problems could not be resolved. Still on the first lap, he returned to the pits and finally parked his Red Bull.
Verstappen: “The engine just went out”
After the race, Verstappen explained that the difficulties had already announced themselves before the start.
“Even the formation lap didn’t go particularly well, and after that, the pre-start phase was terrible,” he reports. “There was simply no consistency at all, and then the engine just went out. Only after the first corner did I get a little power back. After that, the engine sounded really terrible. I couldn’t drive at full throttle anymore, so we brought the car back and that was it.”
Read more Formula 1 Live Ticker: Several investigations after the race!
For Red Bull, the weekend in Monaco ends disappointingly, after the team had been surprisingly competitive on the tight street circuit.
Barcelona as an important benchmark for Red Bull
Verstappen expects a more precise assessment of the latest developments on the car only at the upcoming race in Spain.
“That’s a completely different track. There it will show whether we have actually made a real step forward or not, because there it’s all about fast corners and aerodynamic performance,” explains the Dutchman.
The Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona Catalunya should thus provide a much more meaningful indication of how competitive Red Bull actually is in the rest of the season.
Read more Russell puzzled: Antonelli is increasingly putting pressure on the Mercedes star