Key takeaways
- Health update: Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies confirmed that Max Verstappen suffered no injuries in his high-speed Lap 1 crash at Zandvoort and will be fit to race at Monza.
- Praise for Lawson: Mekies commended Liam Lawson for a solid drive to 7th place, noting that the New Zealander extracted the maximum possible result while serving as Red Bull’s sole entry.
- No doubt on strategy: Red Bull dismissed suggestions of a one-stop strategy, confirming that a two-stop plan using medium compound tires was always the optimal path for Lawson.
Red Bull Team Principal Laurent Mekies confirmed that Max Verstappen is unharmed and ready for the upcoming Italian Grand Prix after a heavy opening-lap crash abruptly ended his home race at Circuit Zandvoort.
Verstappen triggered the afternoon’s sole red flag after losing rear control through Turn 14 on damp track patches, striking the outer barrier at high speed.
“Max is fine. He will be in the car next week,” Mekies told Sky Sports.
Max Verstappen crashed heavily on the opening lap at Zandvoort (Photo: Red Bull Content Pool)
With Verstappen out early, Liam Lawson—substituting for the injured Isack Hadjar—carried Red Bull’s hopes alone. Lawson delivered a clean, steady drive to secure 7th place.
“It is very difficult to transition into a car under these conditions, so Liam did what he could,” Mekies evaluated. “He did a very good job in qualifying yesterday, staying just a tenth off Max. Today was a bit of a lonely race for him. Without Max’s benchmark, it’s hard to judge pure pace, but he brought home points. It was likely the best possible result.”
Mekies also rejected questions regarding tire strategy, clarifying that Red Bull never considered a single pit stop for Lawson.
“There was no discussion about doing a one-stop. It was very clear to us that it would be a two-stop race,” Mekies added. “The compounds performed similarly to what we saw from rivals, so sticking with mediums was the right call.”
Formula 1 heads to Monza next for the 2026 Italian Grand Prix from September 4–6. GRANDE PRÊMIO covers all paddock news live from Zandvoort with reporter Leonid Kliuev. Follow all updates on our news page.
