Uncovered: Max Verstappen’s role in Red Bull’s HQ meeting

Max Verstappen explained how he pointed out areas where improvements are needed to Red Bull in their emergency meeting.

And as for how he got that message across, the winner of the Japanese Grand Prix explained how giving Red Bull the hairdryer treatment was not an approach he used, or would have seen value in.

Max Verstappen and Red Bull meeting: Key to Suzuka breakthrough?

After a runner-up result in Australia and P4 in China – both grands prix won by McLaren – Red Bull called an emergency meeting at their Milton Keynes base to plot out their next steps in chasing the Drivers’ and Constructors’ World Championships.

And the response was emphatic, as Verstappensnatched pole from McLaren out of nowhere at the Japanese Grand Prix, converting that to victory and reducing Lando Norris’ Drivers’ Championship lead to just a single point ahead of this weekend’s Bahrain Grand Prix.

That came after Red Bull’s emergency meeting which senior advisor Helmut Marko said largely revolved around Verstappen’s feedback on their F1 2025 challenger, the RB21.

“This meeting is primarily about Max sitting down with the technicians and going through the next steps,” Marko explained to OE24.

And when Verstappen was asked for his version of events on his role in the Red Bull emergency meeting, it was in-keeping with Marko’s comments.

“To point out the things where I think we can improve,” he confirmed to Viaplay.

“In the end, I’m not the specialist to solve things. I can only name what I feel in the car. And in the end, it’s the other people who then have to come up with the solutions. And that takes some time.”

As for the tone of the meeting, with Red Bull’s start to F1 2025 having fallen below expectations, Marko had added that “the aim” of that emergency meeting was “to calmly address Max’s wishes and criticisms.”

Therefore, Verstappen was asked if that was achieved, or did he go with a louder, more abrupt approach to get his points across.

“No, I’m not normally like that anyway, unless someone really pisses me off,” Verstappen confirmed to that idea of banging his fists against the Red Bull table.

“I don’t think that’s necessary either. It’s just naming things constructively and working with that.”