Source:REUTERS/Hollie Adams
[Saba Sports News] A previously undisclosed team radio communication from the Australian Grand Prix has been revealed, showing Max Verstappen expressing his dissatisfaction multiple times during the race. The leaked radio communications indicate that at the start of the race, during the warm-up lap led by the virtual safety car, Verstappen needed to confirm the restart procedure under the new rules. He asked whether he needed to use the boost button, to which race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase explained the operational steps, including turning off energy recovery and pressing the boost button for several seconds during the race restart to avoid power lag.
Due to an incident in the first lap of Saturday’s qualifying session, Verstappen had to start from 20th position. Despite chasing hard during the race, he ultimately finished in sixth place. After the race, Verstappen remarked on the team radio that the new generation of cars is very difficult to drive. In a media interview, he described his own performance as terrible and again criticized the new rules for the 2026 season.
The editor believes that Verstappen’s various complaints are genuine feedback from his experience during the race and reveal many issues with the new car under the rule changes. However, as a professional racing driver, Verstappen’s task is to continually adapt to the new regulations rather than remain in his comfort zone.