Three races, two podiums and one heavily revised RB22 later, Max Verstappen finally has a car that responds when he turns the steering wheel.
That does not mean Red Bull has solved its problems. Friday practice at the Hungaroring delivered another reminder of the distance between improvement and genuine victory pace. Verstappen finished second in the opening session, then slipped to fourth as Ferrari controlled the second hour.
Still, the mood inside Red Bull has changed. The car that looked unsettled and short of speed during the opening months of the 2026 season has become a more credible threat since a major upgrade arrived in Austria.
Verstappen took second at the Red Bull Ring and returned to the podium with third at Spa. A rear-wing failure removed him from contention at Silverstone between those results.
Hungary now offers the sharpest test yet of whether Red Bull has found a lasting recovery or only a temporary lift at circuits that better suited the RB22.
Friday Offers Hope But Not Proof
Verstappen opened the Hungarian Grand Prix weekend with a one-minute 19.559-second lap on the soft tyres. That placed him second in FP1, 0.484 seconds behind Charles Leclerc.
The Red Bull looked competitive through several sections of the lap, although Verstappen complained about the car’s downshifts during his early running. Leclerc eventually lowered the benchmark to one minute 19.075 seconds before a mechanical problem stopped his Ferrari near the pit lane entrance.
FP2 produced a less encouraging picture.
Lewis Hamilton led a Ferrari sweep with a one-minute 18.729-second lap. Verstappen finished fourth, 0.692 seconds away from Hamilton and almost 0.5 seconds behind Lando Norris in third.
Those gaps matter at the Hungaroring. Passing remains difficult, which makes qualifying position especially valuable. Red Bull cannot rely on race strategy or Verstappen’s aggression to recover a large deficit every weekend.
Friday did not expose a crisis. It showed that Red Bull has returned to the leading group without yet controlling it.
Austria Upgrades Changed The Mood
The recovery began at the Red Bull Ring.
Red Bull arrived at its home race with changes to the RB22’s floor, rear suspension, rear corner, rear wing, exhaust, sidepod inlet and engine cover. Engineers designed the package to generate more local aerodynamic load and improve airflow around the rear of the car.
Verstappen immediately delivered the team’s best Sunday performance of the season.
George Russell won the Austrian Grand Prix, but Verstappen crossed the line only 1.611 seconds behind the Mercedes. He also held off championship leader Kimi Antonelli, who finished just 0.375 seconds behind the Red Bull.
That was not an anonymous second place. Verstappen remained close enough to keep Russell under pressure while defending against the fastest driver of the season behind him.
Silverstone should have provided another opportunity. Instead, a failure involving Red Bull’s rotating rear wing sent Verstappen out of the race.
The problem was not Formula 1’s entire active-aerodynamics system. It concerned Red Bull’s own rotating rear-wing design, sometimes called the Macarena wing. The component failed to return correctly after a Straight Mode section, costing the car a large amount of rear downforce. Similar trouble had already contributed to Verstappen’s qualifying crash in Austria.
Red Bull shelved the design for Spa and fitted its older rear wing. Verstappen briefly took the Belgian Grand Prix lead after a strong launch, then eventually finished third behind Antonelli and Leclerc.
That result strengthened his belief that Red Bull was finally moving in the right direction. Verstappen said he hoped the team could “keep that momentum going” as it continued searching for the performance needed to challenge for victories.
Red Bull brought the rotating solution back for Friday practice in Hungary after completing further work on the component.
Verstappen Backs Red Bull’s Engine Project
Red Bull’s new power unit has carried enormous scrutiny since the 2026 rules came into force. Building an engine operation while also adapting to a new chassis formula presented one of the largest technical projects in the team’s history.
Verstappen believes the engine division has delivered close to what it promised.
He said Red Bull’s power-unit engineers had been direct about their expected level before the season and that their predictions had largely proved accurate. Verstappen also described the performance achieved by the new project as impressive.
That assessment came from the driver rather than team management. It also shifts more attention toward the chassis.
Red Bull has gained performance since Austria, but Verstappen still lacks the consistent balance required to attack every type of circuit. Isack Hadjar offered a similar assessment at Spa, explaining that the RB22 was not dramatically weak at one end of the car. Instead, it remained slightly slower than its rivals across several areas.
Hungary can expose those small losses. A fast lap here requires sharp front-end response, stable braking, clean traction and consistent grip through a long series of linked corners. Losing a fraction in several places quickly becomes a significant deficit.
A Recovery With A 113 Point Problem
The championship table prevents anyone at Red Bull from overstating the revival.
Antonelli leads the drivers’ standings with 204 points after 10 rounds. Verstappen sits seventh with 91, leaving the four-time world champion 113 points behind the Mercedes driver.
Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, Charles Leclerc and both McLaren drivers also sit between them.
Red Bull occupies fourth in the teams’ standings behind McLaren, Ferrari and Mercedes. Recent podiums have improved the picture, but they have not placed Verstappen back into a realistic title fight.
That gap explains why Hungary carries more weight than an ordinary race before the summer break.
Another podium would confirm that Austria and Spa were not isolated results. A victory would prove Red Bull has closed the final distance to Mercedes and Ferrari. Falling away from the leading cars would suggest the RB22 still depends too heavily on circuit layout.
Verstappen’s demands remain typically blunt. Returning to the podium has steadied the garage, but Red Bull must still find the final few tenths needed to put him back on the top step.
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FAQs
Why is the Hungarian Grand Prix important for Red Bull?
Austria and Spa suited the improved RB22. Hungary tests whether those gains also work through slower corners on a high-downforce circuit.
How did Max Verstappen perform in Friday practice in Hungary?
He finished second in FP1, 0.484 seconds behind Charles Leclerc, then placed fourth in FP2, 0.692 seconds behind Lewis Hamilton.
What upgrades did Red Bull introduce in Austria?
Red Bull revised the floor, rear suspension, rear corner, rear wing, exhaust, sidepod inlet and engine cover.
Why did Red Bull remove its rotating rear wing?
The wing failed during Verstappen’s Austria and Silverstone weekends. Red Bull reverted to its older design while engineers worked on a safer solution.
How far is Verstappen behind Kimi Antonelli?
Verstappen trails Antonelli by 113 points after 10 rounds. He sits seventh with 91 points.
