Max in P5 after an exciting Hungarian GP: 'I do not understand it'

Published on 21 July 2024 by Kees-Jan Koster

Max Verstappen finished the Hungarian Grand Prix in fifth place. The Dutchman, who started from P3, had a difficult race, and a collision with Lewis Hamilton caused him to remain stuck in P5. On the 4.381-meter-long Hungaroring, Oscar Piastri won his first Grand Prix in his McLaren, with his teammate Lando Norris finishing in P2. Hamilton's Mercedes ended up in P3. Max's teammate at Oracle Red Bull Racing, Sergio Perez, finished seventh.

After the race, Max stated: "It was a really bad race. Everything went wrong, and the strategy was just not good. We know that overtaking here is very difficult, and that is all I had to do during the race. We had to fight, and because of that, we lost a lot of time."

Max continues: "During the first pit stops, I was overtaken via an undercut. Okay, that happens, but the second time I got stuck behind Hamilton again, and then you just cannot get past. They let me drive longer again, and then I got caught in traffic with backmarkers. So, I really do not understand it at all, it was just very bad. At the moment, we are not fast enough."

Before the start of the race, it is partly cloudy and quite warm at 28 degrees. The track temperature is 44 degrees. When the start lights finally go out, we see Max having a good start. Lando Norris loses his lead to Oscar Piastri. Max is pushed wide in the first corner and comes back onto the track in second place. A little later, Max's engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, tells him that it is better to let it go and give the position back to Norris to avoid problems. Shortly after, Max complies with Lambiase's request and drops back behind Norris. In the following laps, Max stays within DRS range of Norris. However, that does not last, as his tyres likely get too hot, and it is better to keep some distance. After eleven laps, Piastri has a lead of over three seconds on his teammate Norris. Meanwhile, Max complains over the radio about understeer and oversteer in his RB20.

After fifteen laps, the gap to the McLarens gradually increases, and Max sees Hamilton's Mercedes coming closer. The Brit pits for fresh tyres on lap seventeen. Norris reacts immediately, but Max stays out for another lap. Piastri is the next to pit. The Australian stays ahead of his teammate, and Hamilton sets several fastest laps in a row.

"I cannot brake. I cannot go into the corners. The front and rear tyres are really bad," an unhappy Max reports over the radio. The team lets Max drive a few more laps, and it is not until lap 22 that the Dutchman pits. He returns to the track behind Hamilton in P5. At that moment, Charles Leclerc is the leader, as he still has to make his first pit stop, which he does on lap 24. At that point, Max sets the fastest lap of the race.

Max's gap to leader Piastri is over ten seconds after 28 laps. He is closing in on Hamilton's Mercedes ahead of him, while Norris in P2 cannot mount a challenge to his teammate in P1. Hamilton demanded too much from his hard tyres early in his stint and is now paying the price. The RB20 of the world champion is closing in on the Mercedes.

After 34 laps, Max is right under Hamilton's rear wing, but it takes another lap before he can make an attempt to overtake. Max crawls up to the Brit on the straight but cannot get past; however, Hamilton locks up. Max pulls alongside heading into turn two, passes on the outside but goes too wide in the next corner, allowing Hamilton to stay in P3. The two rivals continue to fight for several laps until Hamilton heads to the pits. Behind Hamilton, Leclerc also pits, having nearly closed the gap to Max. "It is unbelievable how we let ourselves get undercut like this and completely ruin my race," says Max over the radio.

Now that Max is driving in clean air, he is faster than the McLarens ahead of him. However, Hamilton on his new tyres is faster than Verstappen. After 46 laps, Norris makes an undercut on Piastri with a pit stop. The Australian is called in on lap 48 and returns to the track behind Norris. This puts Max in the lead, but he still needs to make another pit stop.

Norris is told over the radio to give his position back to Piastri when it suits him. The McLaren team does not want Norris to lose too much pace. Meanwhile, Max makes his second pit stop and falls back to P5 behind Hamilton. With seventeen laps to go, Max catches up to the back of Leclerc's Ferrari. It takes a while before Max can make a real attempt, but on lap 57 he finally passes and sets his sights on Hamilton.

Up front, Norris is told to manage his pace more carefully. His engineer is convinced that he will "do the right thing" and give his position back. With ten laps to go, Max catches up to the back of Hamilton's Mercedes. A battle ensues, ultimately ending in a collision between the two. Max goes off the track in turn one after a failed overtaking attempt on Hamilton. Max initiated his move very late, locked up, and there was heavy contact, causing the RB20 to fly through the air with possible damage. Max loses a position to Leclerc and runs in P5 in the closing stages.

Up front, Norris is instructed with two laps to go to let Piastri pass, which the Brit immediately does on the straight. Max can no longer challenge Leclerc and finishes the race in P5 behind Piastri, Norris, Hamilton, and Leclerc.

Results Grand Prix Hungary: