From "paper car" to pole in Malaysia – What's behind Max Verstappen and Red Bull's pace?

It is less than a month since Max Verstappen qualified sixth at Monza and afterwards spoke about a Red Bull car "made of paper". Admittedly, that comment specifically concerned the "car degradation" issue – components that sometimes deteriorate over the course of a race – and according to Verstappen and team principal Laurent Mekies, that issue can no longer be fully resolved in 2026.

But in terms of pure pace, significant steps have been made since those frustrations at Monza. Verstappen has finished on the podium at every race weekend since his crash at Zandvoort, and in Malaysia he has now secured his first pole of the year.

The latter marks another step forward because, yes, Verstappen made it onto the podium at Monza, Madrid and Baku, but Red Bull was never the benchmark at any point during those race weekends.

And that is precisely what the Milton Keynes-based team has been so far at the Sepang International Circuit. Verstappen already completed impressive long runs on Friday and followed that up with a convincing pole position a day later.

"I think the car has been in a good operating window all weekend", Verstappen told a handful of Dutch journalists in the paddock after qualifying.

"Is that perhaps because it’s the heat here? It could be, but I do think we’ve made good steps with the set-up over the past few weeks as well, and of course with those upgrades on the car."

Verstappen thinks Mercedes is simply having an "off-weekend"

There are two sides to the explanation for Saturday’s picture. Verstappen believes other teams – Mercedes in particular – are struggling slightly more with the heat than Red Bull, and secondly, the technical team led by Pierre Waché has undeniably improved the RB22.

As for the former, Verstappen does not want to jump to far-reaching conclusions just yet. According to him, Saturday’s result does not necessarily mean that Mercedes’ long-awaited upgrade is not working.

"I think they always struggle more at circuits where it’s very hot, so I think we have to wait and see with their upgrades over the coming races."

Verstappen thinks Mercedes is simply having an off-weekend in the Malaysian heat

Photo by: Srinivasa Krishnan

In general terms, Verstappen still sees Mercedes as the benchmark.

"I think they are generally still very efficient in many areas. We just have to look at it race by race. Last weekend they were obviously faster and actually they have been all season, just not now. They’re having a bit of an off-weekend."

More confidence in the RB22 after Baku upgrade

Verstappen prefers to look at his own team and, in that respect, it is important that the Baku upgrade – the final significant package of the year – has delivered what was expected internally.

"It’s clear that, with the changes we’ve made, we’ve been able to get much more out of the car and the car is also easier to drive. That’s obviously positive, also for next year. There are a few things we can’t change anymore this season, so we want to address those for next year and I hope it will then move even further in the right direction."

Aside from the outright pace, the Baku upgrade has also made both Red Bull drivers feel more comfortable behind the wheel, Verstappen acknowledges.

"It’s obviously nice when you have a car that does a little more of what you want. At the start of the season, I really had weekends where I would turn the steering wheel and strange things would happen. Now it’s all a bit more normal again."

Verstappen says he can make more of a difference again after Red Bull's successful Baku upgrade

Photo by: Srinivasa Krishnan

When asked by Motorsport.com, Verstappen acknowledges that this allows him to make more of a difference as an individual again, although in his view a driver can still only make a limited difference due to the constraints of the regulations.

"That’s obviously still a bit of an issue. But the more our car gets the right balance again, the more I can push and the more I can get out of the car."

As for his frustrations with the regulations and energy management, it is worth noting that this pole position changes nothing in that regard. "No! That has nothing to do with whether I’m first, sixth or 10th. Those are two separate things", Verstappen stressed.

Is Red Bull's race pace enough for a first win of 2026?

An important caveat is that the starting position is not everything this weekend. Pirelli already explained on Friday that, due to the extremely rough tarmac and very high degradation, everything hinges on tyre management. But Verstappen says he is confident in that respect as well.

"Personally, I’m confident with what I did. If others make bigger sacrifices [for the race], then good luck to them, but I’m ready", the four-time world champion said.

"Ultimately, we need to have a decent start and that’s already difficult enough for us this year. After that, it’s obviously a very long race with the tyres. My race pace did look good, but of course you don’t know what others have changed since Friday, so we’ll have to wait and see."