Max Verstappen’s frustration with Red Bull’s 2025 car did not disappear just because he delivered another headline result at Suzuka. The four-time world champion has been unusually blunt about the RB21’s balance problems, calling the car “undriveable” earlier in the season and warning through the Japanese Grand Prix weekend that Red Bull’s underlying issues remain. That matters beyond one race: it speaks to a team still searching for answers while McLaren keeps applying pressure at the front.
Verstappen’s complaint did not start in Japan
The sharpest wording came before Suzuka, during Red Bull’s difficult run at the Chinese Grand Prix sprint weekend. ESPN reported that Verstappen described the car as “undriveable” and said he had “never had anything this bad,” a striking assessment from a driver who has spent the hybrid era’s most dominant stretch at the front. Those comments framed everything that followed in Japan, because Suzuka was never just about one qualifying lap or one race result. It was about whether Red Bull had actually fixed the car. The evidence suggested it had not.
That context is important. Red Bull had already made a major driver move before Japan, dropping Liam Lawson after only two rounds and promoting Yuki Tsunoda ahead of his home race. AP reported the switch on March 27, 2025, describing it as an admission that Red Bull had made the wrong call with Lawson after he failed to score and struggled badly in Australia and China. The team’s second-seat instability has only intensified scrutiny on the car itself. When one driver is struggling, teams can point to adaptation. When the reigning champion is openly unhappy too, the spotlight shifts to the machine.
Suzuka exposed the same Red Bull weakness in a different way
On paper, Japan looked like a reset. Verstappen took pole at Suzuka with a lap-record 1:26.983, according to AP’s qualifying report published on April 5, 2025. He beat Lando Norris by 0.012 seconds and Oscar Piastri by 0.044 seconds. It was his 41st career pole, and one of those laps that reminded everyone why he is still the sport’s most complete driver over a single lap.
But the key detail was not the pole itself. It was what Verstappen said afterward. Motorsport.com reported that he warned Red Bull had not solved its Formula 1 car woes despite what he called a “special” pole. He had not looked dominant through qualifying, then suddenly found the lap in Q3. That distinction matters. A brilliant lap from Verstappen is not the same thing as a comfortable car. Sometimes it hides the problem rather than disproves it.
He reinforced that concern on Friday at Suzuka. Motorsport.com reported Verstappen saying things were “not really clicking at the moment” during the Japanese Grand Prix weekend. That is not the language of a driver who feels planted through high-speed corners, and Suzuka is one of the clearest circuits for exposing confidence issues. If a car is nervous in direction changes or inconsistent on entry, Suzuka magnifies it.
Why “undriveable” is such a serious word in Formula 1
Drivers complain all the time. That is normal. “Undriveable” is different. It suggests a car that is not merely slower than rivals, but unpredictable enough that the driver cannot consistently attack braking zones, rotate the car, and trust rear grip on corner exit. In modern F1, that usually points to a balance window that is too narrow. One setup change helps one phase of the corner and hurts another. One track masks the issue. The next one exposes it again.
That is why Verstappen’s Japan comments carried weight even after pole. He was effectively saying the headline result did not match the underlying feel. I have watched enough F1 weekends to know that when elite drivers separate lap time from drivability, they are sending a message to the factory as much as to the media. They are saying: do not be fooled by the stopwatch.
Formula1.com’s coverage from the weekend also reflected that tension. One report highlighted Verstappen’s confidence after a strong Friday showing, while another feature around Tsunoda’s promotion acknowledged Red Bull’s own admission that its latest cars had become difficult to drive. Put together, the picture is clear. Red Bull could still produce moments of speed, but the car was not giving either driver a broad, forgiving operating window.
The Lawson-Tsunoda switch made the problem harder to ignore
Red Bull’s decision to replace Lawson with Tsunoda before Japan was officially about performance, but it also underlined a deeper concern. Lawson had qualified last for both the Chinese Grand Prix sprint and main qualifying sessions, according to AP. That was too poor to survive in a top team. Yet the move also revived a familiar debate: how much of Red Bull’s car concept is tailored to Verstappen’s style, and how much is simply difficult for anyone to handle?
AP noted that the change echoed comments from Sergio Perez in 2024 that Red Bull’s development direction had made the car increasingly difficult to manage. That historical thread matters. If multiple teammates across different seasons struggle with similar traits, and Verstappen himself is now using words like “undriveable,” then this is not just a second-driver story. It is a design and setup story.
What Japan did, and did not, prove about Red Bull
Suzuka proved that Verstappen can still extract extraordinary performance when it counts. It did not prove Red Bull is back in full control of the championship fight. There is a difference. Pole by 0.012 seconds is not domination. It is survival at the sharp end. Motorsport.com’s reporting made that plain: Verstappen himself did not treat the result as evidence that the problems were gone.
That is the real takeaway from Japan. Red Bull still has peak performance. What it may not have is consistency. And consistency wins titles over 24 races, not one spectacular Saturday lap.
For US readers following the championship arc, that is the angle worth watching over the next rounds. If Verstappen keeps delivering while continuing to criticize the car, then Red Bull is living on driver brilliance more than technical comfort. That can work for a while. It rarely feels sustainable across a full season, especially against a stable rival package.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did Verstappen actually call the Red Bull “undriveable”?
Yes. ESPN reported during the Chinese Grand Prix sprint weekend that Max Verstappen described Red Bull’s car as “undriveable” and said he had “never had anything this bad.” Those comments became a major talking point heading into Japan.
Did Red Bull fix the problem at the Japanese Grand Prix?
Not according to Verstappen’s own assessment. Although he took pole at Suzuka with a 1:26.983 lap-record time, Motorsport.com reported that he said Red Bull had not solved its car issues. The result looked strong, but the driver feedback remained cautious.
Why is Suzuka such an important test for car balance?
Suzuka has fast, flowing corners that punish instability. A car that feels nervous on turn-in, weak in rear grip, or inconsistent through direction changes gets exposed there quickly. That is why Verstappen’s lack of confidence at Japan carried extra significance.
How close was Verstappen’s pole lap in Japan?
It was extremely close. AP reported that Verstappen beat Lando Norris by 0.012 seconds and Oscar Piastri by 0.044 seconds in qualifying on April 5, 2025. That margin showed how little room Red Bull had over McLaren.
Why did Red Bull replace Liam Lawson with Yuki Tsunoda before Japan?
Lawson struggled badly in the opening rounds, failing to score and qualifying at the back in China. AP reported that Red Bull dropped him after two races and promoted Tsunoda for his home Japanese Grand Prix, a move widely seen as both ruthless and revealing.
What is the bigger concern for Red Bull after Japan?
The concern is not whether Verstappen can still produce elite laps. He can. It is whether Red Bull has a car that is predictable enough over a full season. If the RB21 remains narrow in its setup window, Verstappen may keep rescuing results, but the team will stay vulnerable.