Max Verstappen described his win at the Malaysian round of the Bahrain Grand Prix as an "incredibly special and emotional" occasion, especially after Red Bull secured their first victory of the 2026 campaign. The Dutch driver was in flawless form, expertly handling the mixed‑weather track and the safety‑car restarts to edge out championship leader Kimi Antonelli and to keep alive his streak of winning at least one race each season since he joined Red Bull in 2016. Just two months earlier Verstappen's future had been the subject of intense speculation. During the summer break he signed a fresh contract that will keep him with the Milton‑Keynes outfit until at least the end of 2030, and the Malaysian success underscored why the driver has such confidence in the team.
After coming within two points of a fifth world title last year, it became evident that Verstappen would not be able to fight for the championship this season for the first time since 2020. Red Bull, working hand‑in‑hand with Ford, built a brand‑new power unit for 2026, but the car’s chassis proved to be the Achilles’ heel at the start of the year. In fact, the FIA’s first ADUO (Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities) review declared the Red Bull‑Ford engine the benchmark on the grid, while the RB22 chassis struggled with balance and predictability. Even a driver of Verstappen’s caliber found it hard to extract confidence from the car, managing only a single podium in the opening seven races.
The team introduced a major aerodynamic and weight‑reduction upgrade package at the Austrian Grand Prix in June. The changes had an immediate impact: Verstappen finished just under two seconds behind race‑winner George Russell to take second place, looked set for a podium at Silverstone before a rear‑wing failure ended his run, and later collected podiums in Belgium and Hungary before the summer hiatus. A rare error at his home event in Zandvoort saw Verstappen crash out on the first lap, but he quickly rebounded with podium finishes in Monza and Madrid.
Further upgrades were delivered for the Baku sprint, where Verstappen was only two‑tenths of a second behind Russell in what became F1’s closest finish since 2002. Excluding the two retirements at the British and Dutch Grands Prix, Verstappen has stood on the podium in the remaining seven races since the Austrian upgrades. In many ways his dominant weekend in Malaysia should not have been a surprise – Red Bull have been on a clear upward trajectory.
"We had a very complicated and tough start to the year with all sorts of problems and just not being competitive enough," Verstappen admitted. "But throughout the year the team has worked extremely hard to understand our issues and bring performance‑boosting upgrades to make the car more drivable.
Step by step we got closer and closer, and on Sunday – especially this whole weekend – we were in great form, so it feels amazing." He added, "It’s wonderful to win here and also claim our first victory with our own engine. It’s an incredible project with many partners and countless people dedicated to getting us to this point – a fantastic feeling." Much of the credit goes to former team principal Christian Horner, whose leadership helped the Red Bull‑Ford powertrain exceed expectations in its debut season as an engine supplier. Nonetheless, Horner’s final years at the team were marked by internal turmoil after co‑founder Dietrich Mateschitz passed away in 2022, prompting a power struggle that saw several key figures depart, including legendary designer Adrian Newey, chief engineering officer Rob Marshall, sporting director Jonathan Wheatley, advisor Helmut Marko and eventually Horner himself. These departures raised questions about Verstappen’s future with Red Bull for 2024‑25, especially after his father Jos Verstappen fell out with Horner.
In July 2025 Laurent Mekies took over as team principal, and the relationship between the Verstappen camp and the new boss appears far more harmonious. Max has praised Mekies’ engineering background and the collaborative atmosphere he fosters. A year after Mekies arrived, Red Bull uncovered a surge of performance that propelled Verstappen to eight consecutive podiums, including four wins, and unexpectedly pushed Lando Norris into title contention. While it is difficult to attribute every gain solely to Mekies, the rapid development this season can certainly be linked to his leadership.
After the Malaysian victory, Mekies said, "The credit belongs to everyone who has worked incredibly hard on this project over the past five years. Everyone in Milton Keynes and at the track deserves this moment and should celebrate it as a key step toward many more wins in the future.
This result confirms the progress we have been making in recent months. We were already close several times, and today we turned that pace into a win. The team has been working tirelessly to improve our package, and weekends like this are the reward for that effort." It is still early to determine whether Verstappen’s long‑term commitment to Red Bull will prove the right decision – only time, perhaps by 2027, will tell. What is clear, however, is that the combination of Mekies as team principal, the trusted technical director Pierre Wache and chief performance engineer Ben Waterhouse – both long‑time Red Bull stalwarts – forms a core that is rebuilding a new Red Bull era around Verstappen.
"Everyone is contributing a lot and always trying to find performance, upgrades and push the team forward," Verstappen told Sky Sports F1. "In Baku we were quick in the corners but not on the straights compared to Mercedes. In Malaysia we were decent in the corners and quick on the straights.
Sometimes we just need to understand the whole package – why we are quick, why we were not so quick and take it step by step." Red Bull has a strong history of developing competitive cars, and this season appears to be no exception. There is little reason to doubt that Verstappen will add to his 72 career victories during the remaining seven rounds. The Malaysian triumph was a reminder that the Red Bull‑Verstappen partnership remains a formidable force, one that may have been momentarily dormant but is now fully awake again.
Formula 1 heads to Singapore for the final sprint weekend of the season, with action beginning on Friday and live coverage on Sky Sports F1. Viewers can stream Sky Sports via NOW – no contract required, cancel anytime.