Panorama inesperado. Max Verstappen did not imagine such a complicated start to the season. After winning the Formula 1 title in 2021, the Dutchman had great expectations for this edition; however, mechanical problems are becoming a constant and this is the second time he has had to abandon a race.
The Australian Grand Prix was an ideal opportunity to compete for the championship. The Red Bull driver was in second place, very close to the leader Charles Leclerc, but with only 17 laps to go, he had to leave the track due to faults in his car.
Red Bull attributes the problem to a fuel leak. Photo: EFE
"Disappointed. It is very frustrating to end another race like this, as we had an easy second position," the driver said on his Twitter account.
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"Overall, today has been another bad day. Since we didn't have the pace, I just focused on managing my tires to try to reach the end. It seemed like a fairly easy second position and I knew I couldn't fight Charles, so there was no point in pressuring him. We didn't even finish the race, so it's quite frustrating and unacceptable," he added in an interview with Sky Sports.
Remember that 'Mad Max' also failed to finish the Bahrain Grand Prix, the first race of the year. Although Red Bull confirmed that this was due to an external fuel leak, these situations make the reigning champion have other priorities.
"We are already very behind, so I don't even want to think about the championship fight at the moment. I think it is more important to finish the races," he concluded.