When you cross the finish line to secure a hard-fought podium at the United States Grand Prix, the team radio is usually filled with cheers and congratulations. However, if your name is Max Verstappen and your car handled like a shopping cart with a broken wheel for 56 laps, the post-race debrief is going to be incredibly spicy.

Even though Verstappen managed to drag his RB22 to a third-place finish behind race-winner Kimi Antonelli and Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc, the Dutchman was absolutely furious with Red Bull’s execution on Sunday.

The frustration had been brewing all afternoon. After spending a chunk of the race screaming about being stuck in the dirty air of his teammate Isack Hadjar and dealing with an “undriveable” braking issue, Verstappen let the pit wall have it the second the checkered flag waved.

“Yeah, that was terrible,” Verstappen vented over the team radio. “The pace, the wrong tyre, shit pitstop, shit engine braking. Nothing worked. Lucky with the VSC at the end.”

The late Virtual Safety Car he referenced is entirely the reason he kept his trophy. Had the race stayed green, a charging Lewis Hamilton would have likely blown past the struggling Red Bull in the closing laps.

Verstappen: “Probably Not the Right Ones”

Once the helmet came off, Verstappen cooled down slightly but maintained his brutal honesty during his post-race interview with Martin Brundle. When asked about his lack of grip in the final stages, Max pointed directly at the team’s setup choices.

“I think our overall pace was not good enough, and then probably also the tyres that we had available were probably not the right ones,” Verstappen explained. “So, that’s something that we have to understand, because the last few races it was always working well for us.”

AUSTIN, TEXAS – OCTOBER 24: Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (3) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB22 Red Bull Ford Powertrains on track during final practice ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of United States at Circuit of The Americas on October 24, 2026 in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Sam Bloxham/LAT Images) // Getty Images / Red Bull Content Pool // SI202610240856 // Usage for editorial use only //

Instead of throwing a complete tantrum, he accepted the reality of his fortunate finish.

“For whatever reason it didn’t work out here, but we still managed to get on the podium,” he noted. “Maybe a little bit lucky with the VSC at the end, but I’ll take it.”

Survival Mode Against Norris

The one major highlight of Verstappen’s afternoon was a ruthless, extraordinary overtake on Lando Norris. McLaren foolishly gambled by leaving Norris out on old hard tyres, turning him into a sitting duck for the front-runners.

When Brundle praised the aggressive move, noting that Leclerc was right on Max’s gearbox at the time, Verstappen shrugged it off as pure racing survival.

“I had to,” Verstappen stated bluntly. “It was either get overtaken, or you have to go for the overtake, so that’s what I did.”