Verstappen blamed engine issues after eighth in Baku qualifying
NXTbets Pro | Published On: September 26, 2026
Verstappen’s qualifying setback
Max Verstappen qualified eighth for the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku after a qualifying session that unraveled across all three rounds. He said Red Bull’s performance was “not good enough,” and he traced the problem to an internal combustion engine issue rather than an electrical deployment problem. The trouble started in Q1, then got worse in Q2 and Q3. By the end, Verstappen said he was half a second down on the straights, a gap that left him unable to fight for a better starting spot.
The malfunction did more than blunt straight-line speed. Verstappen said it also caused battery problems and misfires. In Q3, a battery problem forced him to abort a lap, and that missed run hurt tire temperature and kept him from making the most of his final attempt. A yellow flag from Lando Norris added another setback. Verstappen said the issue cost him at least half a second, and he believed second place should have been achievable without the problems. He also said Red Bull was not “robust” enough to handle what went wrong, a blunt assessment that underlined how much the team lost in one session.
Engine change outlook
Red Bull then shifted its focus to the power unit itself, with the team investigating whether the internal combustion engine needed to be replaced before the race. Verstappen said an engine change would not bring a Baku grid penalty because another engine was available in the pool, and he expected any penalty to come later in the season instead of in Baku. That allowed the team to address the qualifying problems without triggering a Baku grid penalty.
The FIA later confirmed that Red Bull fitted a fresh internal combustion engine, turbocharger, exhaust set and power unit ancillary component before Sunday’s race. That move matched the concern Verstappen raised after qualifying and pointed to Red Bull addressing the issue before the race. The timing mattered, because the problem had already cost Verstappen a chance to place much higher on the grid. Red Bull’s response gave it a new package for the race and avoided a Baku grid penalty.
