Verstappen is done with his RB20: 'Put it in the museum and leave it!'
Red Bull Content Pool
F1 News
Max Verstappen has completely had it with his 2024 Formula 1 challenger and can't wait to say goodbye to it after tomorrow's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Last year, the Dutchman said goodbye to arguably the best Formula 1 car ever. The RB19 won all but one race in 2023. This year, Formula 1 has been completely different than 2023, as seven drivers won multiple races. In Verstappen's opinion, Red Bull Racing should put the car in a museum and never look back.
Verstappen: 'The RB20 belongs in a museum'
Verstappen finished fifth in qualifying for the final F1 race of the 2024 season. Initially, it looked like he could compete for pole position. His first lap time was solid despite a near crash at the final corner. He kept his foot on the throttle and set a time good enough for fifth place. On his second lap, Verstappen was unable to improve on this effort as Lando Norris took the pole from teammate Oscar Piastri.
After the session, the four-time world champion admitted he was a bit done with his year as a whole. "Of course, I'm going to do my best in the race, but I'm also looking forward to having a break. Because it has been tough enough this year," he said in a conversation with Viaplay.
As for his RB20, Verstappen has no desire to see it soon. Despite Red Bull's struggles in 2024, his car still provided Verstappen with nine race victories and a world driver's championship. "Shove the car in the museum and don't touch it again," says Verstappen, who admits he occasionally thinks back to this moment last year when he had to say goodbye to his most successful F1 car ever.
Verstappen outlines his expectations for Abu Dhabi:
"P5 is obviously not ideal, but it was just another pretty tough qualifying in which the car was very difficult. That's kind of what we've had over the whole season. Sometimes we then get it done in quali, like in Qatar," said the Dutchman, reflecting on qualifying.
"But here again, it's all a bit harder with bumps and kerbs in every corner. The balance is just not how I want it to be. And then, when you go full on the limit, and you're really on the edge of the car, it can also fall the other way very quickly. And that actually happened, so that was just very tricky for me." Verstappen concluded.
This article was written in collaboration with Nicole Mulder
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