Verstappen pulls clear as Red Bull upgrades expose teammate

Max Verstappen has surged ahead of his new teammate in Miami as Red Bull’s major upgrade package appears to suit his driving style - leaving Isack Hadjar struggling.

After a difficult start to 2026, Red Bull used the long April break to address multiple weaknesses in the RB22.

"Red Bull have discovered a number of problems in the car and they have found solutions," said former advisor Dr Helmut Marko.

"If the car is competitive again, the fun will also return to Max and his mood will improve," the 83-year-old told Kronen Zeitung.

The updated car - featuring a Ferrari-style ’Macarena’ rear wing with an even larger opening - immediately looked more competitive in Miami.

"As much as you may doubt my words, I have to say this in fairness to the guys - they developed this (Macarena) concept long before we went out on the track and saw what everyone else was doing," said team boss Laurent Mekies.

"But, as we’ve said, we had more serious issues to resolve before we could get this rear wing on track. So it’s a good indicator of how hard everyone is trying."

Verstappen’s race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase added: "It’s a very very positive day for us as a team."

"We had four or five weeks since the last race. That has given all teams the chance to really look back on the first tests and the first Grands Prix, and to understand the limitations of the car."

However, the improvements appear to have widened the internal gap.

Verstappen was over a second quicker than Hadjar at times, with the French youngster left searching for answers.

"I don’t know why that was the case. I have never had a backlog of more than a tenth this year so far, in the moments when it really mattered," Hadjar said.

"I don’t know what’s going on. I know I can drive."

"It’s absolutely frustrating. I’m behind my teammate by a second," he added to Canal Plus.

"In the first three Grands Prix, I always knew why I was slower, or sometimes faster, than him. Now the difference is a second. We have to figure out where that’s because of. I know I can still drive, so we need to understand this."

He admitted the car itself remains difficult.

"I don’t enjoy the car at all," Hadjar said.

"I have a hard time understanding the car. This is definitely not a big step forward for me."

Former Ferrari engineer Ernest Knoors believes the direction of development may be the key.

"The car does what Max asks of it," he said.

"What is also striking is that Max is now further in front and that Isack Hadjar is immediately further behind Max."

"Maybe he had problems, but it may also be the case that the car has developed further in the past four or five weeks and has gone in the direction of Max, and that Hadjar now has more difficulties."