Frustrated Verstappen...

The Dutchman’s race came to an end at Stowe with four laps left when his RB22 lost control as he entered the high-speed right-hander, sending him into the gravel and eliminating his chances for a podium finish. His frustration was clear over the team radio as he came to a stop.

“I’m stuck, mate,” Verstappen said.

“Fuck this car, fuck! Unbelievable. Fuck this.”

Verstappen explained that the incident was due to a rear wing failure, similar to his crash during the Austrian Grand Prix. “Same as Austria. The rear wing just doesn’t fully close,” he told Sky Sports. The analysis showed it appears to close but remains slightly open, causing a loss of rear downforce and making the car spin off the track. “When it happens once, it's understandable. But twice, it's very dangerous, especially at high-speed corners.”

Verstappen clarified that the issue was different from Austria, saying, “Different fault.” His retirement ended a challenging Silverstone weekend, where he was dissatisfied with his Red Bull's performance. He had complained about downshifts and deployment over the team radio and struggled to keep up with the frontrunners. Although he was in contention for a podium, he noted that it did not reflect Red Bull’s true performance.

“Yeah but we got lucky right? Lewis [Hamilton] had that five-second penalty. We had a VSC at one point come in as well,” he said.

George had a slow puncture, and Kimi had a problem, which put us in a favorable position. Even if we finished on the podium, it wasn’t deserved based on pace, especially on hard tyres where I had no grip. I got lucky with George and Lewis fighting, which was entertaining to watch. Overall, we were too slow. On mediums, it was slightly better, but the balance was off all weekend, so I couldn't push.

“Even with a difficult weekend, you hope to finish the race, but we can’t always do that. It’s just another painful weekend.” This non-score continued a challenging 2026 campaign for the four-time world champion, who admitted he needed time to reset. “It would take a very zen person to be optimistic with what’s happening again this weekend,” he added. “I’m sorry, but it’s just like that. I need a few days to reset and try again.” Verstappen is currently seventh in the drivers’ standings, 103 points behind the championship leader Antonelli.