Mika Hakkinen flabbergasted by what he heard on Max Verstappen’s Red Bull radio well before George Russell crash

Max Verstappen’s Spanish Grand Prix unravelled in spectacular fashion last weekend. Red Bull took a bold strategic gamble with the world champion, opting to make more pit stops than McLaren.

Chasing Lando Norris, Verstappen looked set for at least a third place. But he ended up being classified 10th.

Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli triggered a safety car when he trundled into the gravel with a failure. And Red Bull controversially fitted hard tyres on Verstappen’s car.

On a compound that is notoriously difficult to warm up, Verstappen had to collect a massive slide at the restart, which opened the door for Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc.

Leclerc and Verstappen made full-throttle contact on the start/finish straight, and then George Russell opportunistically dived down the inside at turn one. The Dutchman took to the run-off as both drivers made contact.

Red Bull left him incensed when they instructed him to cede the position for fear of a penalty (which was ultimately unnecessary as the stewards ruled it a racing incident). Verstappen and Russell made contact at turn five, and that led to a 10-second sanction.

Mika Hakkinen can’t believe Max Verstappen didn’t know Red Bull would fit hard tyres

Verstappen’s difficulties arguably stemmed from Red Bull’s hard-tyre choice. Teams often find themselves with limited options in the event of a late safety car, but perhaps the wiser move was to leave him out on worn softs.

Based on his radio communications, Verstappen didn’t know that Red Bull would fit the white-marked rubber. He asked, ‘Why are we on a hard?’ and questioned whether any other driver had used it during the race.

Speaking on the Drive to Wynn podcast, two-time world champion Mika Hakkinen expressed shock at this exchange. He says a driver should be aware of the team’s strategic plans.

“I was very surprised about that question,” the McLaren legend said. “Normally, the driver knows exactly what tyres he has and the condition of the tyres when they’re going to put them on the car during a race.

“When I saw them putting the hard tyres on Max, I thought, ‘This is not going to end up nicely, he’s going to struggle, he can’t get the temperature, he’s going to slide everywhere and everybody is just going to be coming left, right and centre overtaking him’.”

What Austrian Grand Prix organisers are thinking as Max Verstappen faces ban threat

This was perhaps another operational failure from Red Bull, a team who executed flawlessly in their 2022 and 2023 pomp. They have lost some of their most influential and longest-serving staff, including sporting director Jonathan Wheatley.

Verstappen has now fallen 49 points behind Oscar Piastri, a gap that is theoretically recoverable in 15 races. Unfortunately for the 27-year-old, McLaren looked as dominant as ever even after the FIA’s much-anticipated front-wing clampdown.

And his championship hopes could be in ruins if he picks up a race ban. Verstappen must navigate the next two events with 11 of the 12 permitted penalty points.

Red Bull know a Verstappen ban would be ‘terrible’ for their image ahead of their home race in Austria. If he earns another point in Canada, then the Spielberg organisers will be worried about how they’re going to satisfy the ‘Orange Army’ in the grandstands.