Gravel flew and carbon fibre fragments skittered across the asphalt as Max Verstappen vaulted through the trap at Turn 10 during the second practice session at Albert Park. The image of the RB22 bouncing over the gravel — floor panels shredded, underside gouged — is now tied to the phrase verstappen red bull car damage that engineers will spend the night repairing.
What happened in practice?
Verstappen was on a flying lap when he ran wide on the exit of Turn 10 and slid off onto the grass and into the gravel. The run through the trap tore away parts of the floor and underside, with bits of carbon fibre thrown clear as the car rejoined the track. He later returned to the pits for checks and finished the day sixth quickest, his best lap a 1: 20. 366s, 0. 637s behind the pace-setter, who posted a 1: 19. 729s.
How serious is Verstappen Red Bull Car Damage?
Paul Monaghan, Red Bull’s chief engineer, summed up the situation bluntly: “I’ll say there’s enough to keep us busy. ” He added that the damage is recoverable and not drastic — “it’s a bit of a thump, so we’ll tidy it up and go again. ” The literal damage was concentrated on the floor and underside, material that is fragile but repairable in the garage.
How did the day affect running and setup work?
Running was already compromised at times. Verstappen managed only 13 laps in the second practice session and had 27 laps in the morning session, leaving the team with limited clean running. He experienced a separate issue when his car appeared to switch off with revs dropping at the start of the hour in the pit lane. Verstappen described a day of mixed progress: “In FP1, we did get in a good number of laps, and in FP2 we found that we ran into a few issues. We are working on getting the setup right with the car and were struggling a bit with grip, and also went into the gravel. We didn’t have a full day of clean running, but pace-wise, we are where I expected us to be. There is still a lot of work to do, and we will analyse what worked and what we can improve on overnight, and that is the reality at the moment. “
Monaghan also reflected on the broader technical context: with a brand-new engine developed in-house for the first time and a fresh car under new rules, both cars left the pit lane at the start of the opening session and were competitive straight away. He noted the team objective for the next running: to learn how to consistently get clean laps out of the RB22, whether in qualifying trim or race conditions.
Who is working on the problem and what will they do?
Red Bull’s engineers, led in public comments by Paul Monaghan, will prioritise repairing the floor and underside panels damaged in the excursion. The plan is to tidy the affected areas and return to track running. Monaghan also commented on the drivers: the new team-mate is “getting his head around it” while Verstappen remains a “competitive soul, ” a dynamic the engineering team will balance as they refine setup and reliability through practice.
The RB22’s damage is being treated as a recoverable setback rather than a lasting impairment, but it does compress the schedule for setup work overnight and puts pressure on the team to extract repeatable lap performance the following day.
Back at Turn 10, where gravel once showered the RB22 and pieces of carbon fibre traced a brief flight path behind the car, engineers will be measuring, replacing and testing. The visible signs of verstappen red bull car damage are a tangible reminder of how quickly fine margins can be lost — and how quickly a pit lane can become a repair shop when speed meets the unforgiving edge of a circuit.
