Max is furious

Fire in the rear! Verstappen out early in Melbourne

Pictures of a mishap: Verstappen's car stumbled in Australia.(Bild: Screenshot ServusTV)

He was furious in the pits, scolding his team - no wonder, Max Verstappen had just retired from the Australian Grand Prix, which was completely unusual for him. The brakes were faulty and fire flared up in the rear of his car.

The start had gone quite well: Pole man Verstappen got away well and maintained his lead. Until the second lap. Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz stalked him and passed the world champion in turn nine.

Brake on fire
A short time later, it became clear that Verstappen had major problems. His car was unstable, he radioed into the pits. He had been having problems with the brakes all weekend. Then, on the third lap of Sunday's race, the big mishap: smoke began to billow from the rear of his car and the right brake caught fire. Verstappen dragged himself into the pits, so to speak, and the mechanics were immediately on hand with fire extinguishers to prevent anything worse.

(Bild: AP)

(Bild: Screenshot orf.at)

"It's not ideal"
However, it quickly became clear that there was no chance of continuing. Parts of the Red Bull car were literally shredded. "I noticed right from the start that something was wrong," explained Verstappen after the race. He got oversteer on the very first lap, "it was very strange, the car was difficult to drive". His conclusion: "Of course it's not ideal, but it can happen.

Verstappen's first retirement in 24 months. Unusual. This was also evident in Verstappen's body language. He was angry in the pits, scolding his crew. The fact that his retirement could make the championship exciting again is no consolation to him.