verstappen was involved in two damaging incidents at the Australian Grand Prix weekend in Melbourne: a high-speed off at Turn 10 in second practice that shredded the car floor and a subsequent exit from qualifying in Q1 that ended his session early. Red Bull chief engineer Paul Monaghan described the practice hit as having “enough to keep the team busy, ” and said the damage is recoverable. The sequence left Verstappen sixth quickest on the day with a lap of 1: 20. 366 while Oscar Piastri set the day’s benchmark at 1: 19. 729.
Verstappen: practice off, floor shredded and Q1 exit
The practice incident came in the second session at Albert Park when Verstappen went off into the gravel at Turn 10 and bounced through the trap, which shredded the floor and sent carbon-fibre debris flying behind the car. Monaghan assessed the impact and the work required, saying, “I’ll say there’s enough to keep us busy. ” He added that “It’s recoverable. It’s nothing that drastic, but it’s a bit of a thump, so we’ll tidy it up and go again. ” Later in the day Verstappen did not progress past Q1 in qualifying, eliminating his chances to start higher on the grid.
Team reaction and damage assessment
Paul Monaghan, chief engineer, Red Bull, framed the damage as significant but manageable, noting the team would tidy the car and continue. Monaghan also praised the package’s broader performance, calling the opening showing “Fantastic” while explaining the team faces the dual task of repairing the damaged car and learning how to extract consistent laps. He pointed to the challenge of turning the RB22’s pace into repeatable qualifying and race laps as a main objective for the next sessions.
Session fallout, times and wider running
On raw times, Verstappen’s best lap of the day registered as 1: 20. 366, placing him sixth quickest overall; Oscar Piastri posted a leading 1: 19. 729, with Kimi Antonelli 0. 214 seconds adrift of Piastri. The weekend’s running also featured a separate big crash for Antonelli in FP3 that brought out red flags, and there were indications the field was still bedding in under the new technical package and power-unit configurations. The team confirmed both Red Bull cars started P1 and both were competitive straight away, while also noting a couple of minor issues in P2 had hindered running.
What’s next for the car and track action
Red Bull’s immediate priority is repair and recovery of the damaged car and then focus on extracting consistent qualifying and race laps, Monaghan said. The team intends to tidy the floor and press on with set-up work to prepare for the next on-track sessions, while drivers who missed qualifying will aim to get laps in ahead of the Grand Prix. Verstappen’s weekend now hinges on how quickly the engineering crew completes repairs and how effectively the team can translate pace into repeatable performance.
verstappen’s incidents in practice and qualifying have forced a rapid rebuild effort and will be the focal point for mechanics and strategists as on-track action resumes.
