The end of an era: Can Max Verstappen make a comeback?
Image: AFP
There used to be a period in Formula 1 when Max Verstappen's name was on top of everything - practice sessions, warm ups, sprints and main races.
But this season, its been an all orange affair and the first practice session of the Hungartian grand prix weeked hasn't been any different.
Verstappen was almost a whole second of the lead pace set by Lando Norris while his fellow Red Bull teammate Yuki Tsunoda was struggling at the bottom of the pack.
Ferrari have grown out of Red Bull's shadow and seem to be the front runner up behind McLaren's pace - with Charles Leclerc finding the right lines around the Hungaroring on Friday.
Norris, Oscar Piastri and Leclerc made up the top three drivers during FP1. Racing Bulls rookie Isack Hadjar had a phenomenal session, posting the fourth quickest time of the day, inches ahead of Lewis Hamilton in the Ferrari.
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Verstappen managed to pull a rabbit out of a hat last week in Belgium when he beat the McLarens and won the Sprint at Spa, twisting the RB21 up and over Eau Rouge to give his home fans something to cheer.
But the long term race pace just wasn't there for the Champion, getting outrun by Piastri (P1) and Norris (P2) again. Piastri's win last week and Norris's P2 podium finish has all but solidified an orange victory at the end of this season.
Fans and maybe even McLaren boss himself, Zak Brown, don't know yet just which driver in McLaren will lift the trophy. Although Piastri has dominated his teammate this season, Norris looked like he isn't throwing in the towel over the course of the past few races, and closing the point gap between them.
For the four-time World Champion Verstappen, however, it doesn't look like he's equaling Michael Schumacher's record of five-striaght World Titles any time soon. Pity though, it would have capped off a hall-of-fame level career at Red Bull, although there will always be a cloud hanging over the 2021 title.
Red Bull just haven't been able to deliver a car capable of allowing Verstappen to compete at McLaren or recently, Ferrari's level. The team have experimented with different aerodynamic appraoches for the first half of the season, even opting for a super skinny rear wing at one point.
Now 109 points behind Piastri in the leader, Verstappen will need to find whatever last bit of juice the RB21 has to offer before its too late. While it already may be a little too late in terms of points, its Formula 1, so you never know what type of second half McLaren might have.
Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko came out swinging this week, defending his team an d Verstappen's seat for next season. The Hungarian GP posed an important mark on the calendar for Red Bull fans, mainly because of the release clause in Verstappen's contract. It allegedly states that if he is fourth or lower in standings, he is allowed to exit the contract.
Marko said it was ridiculous "other people thought they knew the contract better than us", after he was quizzed about it by Austrian media.
According to Verstappen, he never had any plans of leaving but did enjoy stirring the pot a bit.
"That's me, and I do that on purpose because it makes no sense to start throwing things around and actually that should be the same for everyone.
"Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama but for me it's always been quite clear and also for next year.
"I'm discussing with the team already the plans, the things that we want to change next year so that means I'm also staying with the team for next year and if my boat is next to Toto's then the boat is next to Toto's," Verstappen said in Hungary.
He's confirmed Verstappen's place in Red Bull next year, which was widely speculated about. It was alleged that Toto Wolff wanted to sign Verstappen onto Mercedes, but with the new regulations coming into effect next year, Marko said the move would not have " made sense" .
"I can confirm Verstappen will be driving for Red Bull next season," he said.
According to Verstappen, he never had any plans of leaving but did enjoy stirring the pot a bit.
"That's me, and I do that on purpose because it makes no sense to start throwing things around and actually that should be the same for everyone.
"Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama but for me it's always been quite clear and also for next year.
"I'm discussing with the team already the plans, the things that we want to change next year so that means I'm also staying with the team for next year and if my boat is next to Toto's then the boat is next to Toto's," Verstappen said in Hungary.
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