There is trouble in paradise for Red Bull. A tri-faceted problem awaits them going into the summer break. Firstly, despite bringing their biggest upgrade package of 2024 to Hungary, McLaren beat them on pure pace. Secondly, their pit wall unusually faltered under pressure, with Max Verstappen bitterly picking up the pieces. The third continues to be Sergio Perez‘s unpredictable performance. However, the Dutchman’s unbridled rage (which could become their main problem) overshadowed everything and Red Bull has now taken action against his late-night Sim Racing.

iRacing 24 hours of Spa was scheduled for the same weekend as the Hungarian GP. Verstappen did a simulator stint for his Team Redline into the wee hours of the morning. 2016 F1 champion Nico Rosberg was baffled by this indiscipline of pursuing a hobby till 3 am on the morning of a Grand Prix. Moreover, the reigning champ getting easily irritable and sending petulant radio messages during the race shifted focus onto his Sim Racing-induced lack of sleep.

Team Advisor Helmut Marko has now addressed this concerning problem. The 81-year-old began by defending Verstappen. “I have to say that in Imola, after a sim racing session, he didn’t go to bed until three o’clock in the morning – and then won the Grand Prix,” he wrote in his column for Speedweek, referring to the last weekend when iRacing and F1 events lined up. “Max has a different sleep schedule, and he had his seven hours of sleep,” added Marko.

The 81-year-old then revealed an unknown fact about why the Dutchman stayed up late this time around. “His sim assignment on the Hungary weekend at a late hour only came about because a driver in his team had dropped out,” he explained. Initially, Team Principal Christian Horner defended his star driver’s “judgment” on managing sleep and racing, but Red Bull has struck the hammer, anyway. “Nevertheless, we have agreed that he will no longer run simulations so late in the future,” Marko concluded.

Unlike the Imola weekend, Verstappen didn’t win the F1 race this time around. Contrastingly, both his Sim Racing stints helped his team win both events. But with F1 as his full-time job, these wins are only consolation prizes unless he switches careers – from physical to virtual. His post-race mockery of Red Bull only furthers this case.

Max Verstappen shoots a sarcastic jibe at Red Bull’s strategy team in Hungary

Red Bull’s 2023 was the most flawless any F1 team has been in the sport’s 74-year history. Naturally, expectations rose to the brim, but at the Hungarian GP, they fell short. Max Verstappen felt betrayed, in a way, experiencing a rollercoaster of emotions, but empathy wasn’t one of them. He even lashed out heavily at his race engineer, Gianpiero Lambiase, who once referred to the Dutchman as his “little brother.”

However, his X-rated radio messages could’ve been attributed to the adrenaline, and were the least of Red Bull’s problems. It was the 3-time champion’s post-race comments that sounded worse. “I don’t understand (how it can happen),” the 26-year-old told the Dutch media, as quoted by Express. “They (strategy team) have all the information there, of course. Maybe I have to install that in my car, then I can do it myself,” he added, forgetting how much drivers and teams rely on each other in this sport.

Unfortunately, the troubles might only escalate going into the Belgian GP this weekend. As per the Mirror, Red Bull will be equipping the Dutchman’s RB20 with a new engine, which translates into a 10-place grid penalty. Though coming back into the points would be a cakewalk for him, aiming for a podium at the dangerous circuit could be detrimental to the team’s prep. Hopefully, they don’t go at each other’s throats like in Hungary, opening the door for McLaren to leave them in the dust.

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