Verstappen won't blame updates for poor balance in Hungary

Updates to the RB19

Verstappen was three thousandths short of taking pole for the Hungarian Grand Prix, but the Dutchman stood with a face on thunder afterwards. The whole weekend had not gone to Verstappen's liking and that line continued in qualifying. In particular, Verstappen complained bitterly about the balance.

In the press conference, Verstappen was asked about those balance problems and whether the might have to do with the new updates. ''No, just the balance of the car.'' Max also says the inconsistent performance of the car has nothing to do with the updates to the RB19. ''No, I don't think so, because we've been trying a few things and the upgrade looks good. It's just we didn't nail the balance of the car. Simple as that.''

Competition for Verstappen

Verstappen already grabbed seven poles in 2023, with the last five in a row. Although every Saturday is exciting, Verstappen often runs away from the competition on Sunday. In Hungary, that competition is closer for once and so Verstappen was asked if he doesn't think it's a positive that it's a lot more exciting now.

''Yeah, I mean, for sure, for everyone it looks good, right? I mean, I'm just not happy with how my Qualifying went, just because of the balance. It has nothing to do with the gaps to other teams. But for sure, I think this Qualifying was very exciting, because every session, basically, you didn't really know who was actually going to be quickest, right? So I think that's a good thing," the Dutchman concluded.

At 14:00 BST, the Hungarian Grand Prix will start with Lewis Hamilton starting from pole. This puts the great 2021 rivals side by side again on the starting grid. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri also impressed on Saturday and may start the race from the second row of the grid.