Verstappen blames "issues at the rear axle" for late-race pace drop

Max Verstappen believes Red Bull's latest upgrades have transformed the RB22 into a genuine race-winning contender after producing a superb recovery drive to finish second in front of the team's home crowd at the Austrian Grand Prix.

After crashing in qualifying and lining up only fifth on the grid, Verstappen looked to have an uphill battle at the Red Bull Ring.

Instead, the four-time world champion delivered one of his strongest drives of the season, climbing to third within the opening laps before sweeping past Lewis Hamilton in an entertaining wheel-to-wheel fight to move into second place.

From there, Verstappen shadowed race leader George Russell throughout the 71-lap Spielberg race.

Although Red Bull opted not to pit him early enough to cover Mercedes' final stop at a circuit where the undercut proved particularly powerful, the Dutchman produced a stunning final stint, erasing a 10-second deficit to finish right on Russell's gearbox at the chequered flag.

Reflecting on his race afterwards, Verstappen admitted he had enjoyed one of the most competitive Sundays of Red Bull's campaign.

"It was a very good race for us today," he said. "The first two laps were quite fun and the first half felt really good and fun to drive. Then it was basically just about trying to manage our tyres, especially after the battles with Lewis."

Despite his strong pace, Verstappen revealed a technical issue prevented him from mounting a late attack for victory.

"Something happened with the rear axle which made me lose pace which is why I was not able to fight at the end."

The reigning world champion also questioned Red Bull's strategy, suggesting an earlier final pit stop could have allowed him to leapfrog Russell and potentially fight for victory.

"In hindsight we could have done the undercut to jump ahead and I think I had the degradation edge over George but overall I am pleased with P2."

Even so, Verstappen admitted the result exceeded his expectations after a difficult qualifying session left him starting only fifth.

"We did some good racing and I didn’t expect us to be that strong against the Mercedes."

A key reason for Red Bull's competitiveness, according to Verstappen, was the team's latest package of upgrades, which appeared to deliver a significant step forward in race pace.

"It was a great effort from the team: they have worked really hard to get the upgrades to the car so thank you very much to everyone. It was better than expected and the race pace was a lot better than we thought."

The Dutchman even suggested that victory had seemed an unrealistic target before the lights went out on Sunday.

"I didn’t think we would fight for the win when I jumped in the car this morning, so to finish sitting here in the top three is a really positive result for us!"