Verstappen hails Red Bull's Baku upgrade as breakthrough delivers Malaysia and Singapore wins

From struggle to supremacy

For the opening 14 rounds of the 2026 Formula One season, Max Verstappen wrestled with a Red Bull RB22 he found a very difficult car to drive. That changed with a major upgrade introduced at Baku for Round 15 — a package that unlocked the performance needed to win the next two consecutive races, at Sepang (Malaysia) and Singapore.

Verstappen, who secured his first-ever Singapore Grand Prix victory last Sunday, was upbeat about the turnaround.

“The last few races have been really positive for us,” Verstappen said. “Our car has taken a really nice step forward. It's just been more driveable and more predictable. That's what I wanted and needed from the car to find that last step to fight up front. And I hope that we can carry that momentum forward…”

Rivals take notice

The resurgence has not gone unnoticed in the paddock. On 2026-10-12, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff warned of a renewed threat from the Milton Keynes outfit after Verstappen’s Singapore masterclass. “They have developed the car and how it’s all come together as a package,” Wolff told media post-race in Singapore. “And then you put Max Verstappen in the car, and when he feels that this thing is driving like he wants it to drive, then these are the results. He’s been by far the quickest guy today, he’s been the quickest guy in Kuala Lumpur.”

Wolff was blunt about the challenge ahead: “Let’s see when our upgrade hopefully starts to work and land in a place where we think it should be, whether we can be competitive against him, but one thing is for sure, next year it’s full on the fight between the teams and Red Bull is part of that.”

Verstappen’s feedback pivotal

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies credited the driver’s technical input as central to the recovery, speaking on 2026-10-13 after the back-to-back wins sealed the team’s 2026 turnaround. Mekies hailed an “outstanding” Verstappen while cautioning that Red Bull had completed its main upgrade programme and would face a shifting battle at each remaining round.

With the RB22 now transformed into a front-running package, Verstappen’s momentum — and Red Bull’s renewed competitiveness — sets up a fierce conclusion to the 2026 Formula One season.