Verstappen hopes the difficult period won't drag on.

      Max Verstappen this season finds himself in a situation he hasn't been in since 2020: he understands that he's driving at a very high level, but the car doesn't allow him to regularly fight for victories.

      However, he knows how to deal with setbacks, although, of course, he experiences them in his own way, because over the previous four years he consistently achieved success, and four consecutive titles confirm that. But in 2025 McLaren and its drivers are unreachable for their rivals. Nevertheless Max has two wins to his name — in Suzuka and Imola — and he occupies a respectable third place in the drivers' standings.

      "You just have to accept that we're in this position right now," Verstappen told the championship's official website. "Yes, we're not the fastest at the moment, but we're not the slowest either. We're constantly striving to make improvements — it was exactly the same when we were winning.

      "It's happening less often now, but we're trying to better understand the car's problems, trying to figure out where we can gain. Of course, a new technical regulations package will come into force next year, but I believe we also have the opportunity this year to gather a lot of useful information.

      "Over the years I too had cars that didn't allow me to fight for wins, but that's Formula 1 and we know it. So adjusting isn't that hard.

      "I've been racing for Red Bull Racing for a long time, and that's great, because I can definitely say the team has become a second family to me. Together we've achieved great things, including winning championships together. I didn't even know that the Hungarian Grand Prix was my 200th race for the team — you could say time flies, and looking back we have so many great memories…

      "When I first started in Formula 1, even then I thought it would be great to reach the milestone of 200 Grands Prix, and to do that with one team is just fantastic!"

      There has been a lot of talk about Verstappen's contacts with Mercedes, even though formally his agreements with Red Bull do not expire until 2028, but the Dutchman does not want to pursue that topic:

      "The thing is, other people are speculating about all of this, not me — primarily because I don't need to say anything. Either way there's no point, it's just a waste of time, and personally I'm fully committed to continuing with the team until 2028. I'm looking ahead, and our task is to try to prepare for the switch to the new regulations so that we're competitive from the very start of the year.

      "Red Bull Racing won championships before me, and then, when I arrived, there was a sort of restructuring period after which we rose back to the top and started winning. I think we're in a restructuring period again now, although we still remain a very strong team. However, I think we probably need to carry out some restructuring once more and figure out what's going on…

      "Of course this will take time, but hopefully it won't drag on. I think our team's mentality is such that we know how to overcome difficulties — it's always been like that, so I'm not too worried about it."