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formula1

Verstappen raises safety alarm after Red Bull rear-wing failures

Max Verstappen has criticised a repeated Red Bull rear-wing problem after crashes at Silverstone and in Austria, with team principal Laurent Mekies accepting the team must prevent a recurrence.

Verstappen raises safety alarm after Red Bull rear-wing failures
Image credit: bbc.co.uk

Max Verstappen says Red Bull’s rear-wing issue created a serious safety risk after it contributed to crashes at two straight race weekends. The latest incident came at the British Grand Prix, where he lost control at Stowe on lap 48 while pursuing Lewis Hamilton for second place.

According to the source report, the Silverstone crash and an earlier qualifying incident in Austria both involved the rear wing not closing as intended when the car entered a corner. Verstappen said the faults were not identical, but the effect was similar: a sudden loss of rear downforce as he turned in.

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies acknowledged Verstappen’s frustration and said the team needed to take the matter extremely seriously. The problem is especially sensitive because Red Bull uses an unconventional straight-line rear-wing mechanism, part of a wider search among teams for drag reduction and top-speed gains.

The technical concern lands during a difficult championship spell for Verstappen, who is seventh after nine races and has retired three times because of car problems. The BBC report also notes uncertainty around his longer-term Red Bull future, though those contract and rival-team discussions remain an area that would benefit from further confirmation.

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