Red Bull are set to introduce what could be the season’s most significant upgrade package at this weekend’s Austrian Grand Prix, but will it be enough to convince Max Verstappen to stay loyal to the team?

The car, piloted by the four-time champion and his 2026 team-mate Isack Hadjar began the year carrying an extra 12 kilograms.

After modifications at the Red Bull Ring, Dutch publication De Telegraaf have reported the car now meets the strict 768-kilogram minimum (including the driver weight).

In recent months, the Milton Keynes-based squad have been hard at work shedding weight from the car.

Following earlier updates in Miami and Barcelona, the Spielberg improvements are crucial.

The engineers have completely redesigned the sidepod profile and introduced a new floor.

With thinner materials and reduced internal plumbing, Red Bull hope to eliminate every extra kilogram while complying with the new technical regulations.

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Red Bull hope to solve major 2026 issue for Austrian GP

This weight reduction should immediately boost on-track performance, especially in high-speed corners where the car has struggled.

Team principal Laurent Mekies explained that these adjustments are aimed at closing the gap to top rivals like Mercedes and Ferrari.

However, more work is needed if they are to truly compete, a pressing matter given the team’s current challenges, with Mekies even admitting in recent weeks that these upgrades alone ‘will not be enough’.

Verstappen’s F1 future hangs in the balance

Switching to lighter components not only improves lap times, it also increases the chance of keeping star driver Verstappen satisfied.

Despite having a contract until 2028, performance clauses mean he could potentially leave sooner.

Verstappen currently sits seventh in the drivers’ championship after a disappointing start to the new regulations era. His exit clause reportedly kicks in should he be outside the top two at the summer break.

Red Bull’s management is eager to secure his long-term commitment, with a competitive and lighter car playing a pivotal role in that plan.

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The marshal involved in the shocking incident at the Czechia Grand Prix last weekend has issued a statement on the matter.

MotoGP championship leader Marco Bezzecchi lost his cool after crashing out of the sprint race at the Masaryk Circuit, before storming up to a marshal clearing away his motorcycle and pushing and slapping the face of said marshal.

Bezzecchi was understood to be angered by the fact that the bike was still revving when the marshals were trying to safely clear it away out of the gravel, but the Italian’s behaviour led to a ban from the rest of the weekend’s action.

His Aprilla Racing team initially appealed the ban, but were unsuccessful in doing so, before Bezzecchi then appeared at the circuit, and could be seen apologising to the marshal who had been on the receiving end of his despicable behaviour.

A visibly upset Bezzecchi hugged the marshal, and handed him a present, while also taking to Instagram to issue a public apology.

Now, the marshal has had his say, admitting in an interview that he was ‘shocked’ by the ordeal.

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Bezzecchi incident marshal issues statement

Speaking to TNT Sports, Ladja the marshal – who is a volunteer at the Masaryk Circuit – said: “I’m ok. At that moment I was a bit shocked, and at night when the wave of the video and all of the seeing it, I mean the whole world, I was really down because it’s something new for me.

“He was surely stressed and I understand his situation, he crashed, so I did my job and went for the bike and I picked it up.

“I pressed the clutch and tried to pick it up because it was still on and the bike started rolling so I wanted to put it back down and it revved up.

“He probably thought that I did it on purpose, it was a pure accident and then everyone saw what happened.”

Revealing that he had seen Bezzecchi’s online apology, Ladja continued: “Yes I have seen it, and he just came and apologised to me in person.

“So, I mean, I understand him and I wish him the best of luck. It really matters to me that he apologised.”

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Lewis Hamilton is officially back after that brilliant first victory for Ferrari at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix, and there is another reason for his army of fans to be very excited.

The 41-year-old has really banished the memories of that awful first season at Maranello by coming back strongly in 2026.

Second-place finishes in Canada and Monaco hinted strongly that the seven-time world champion and his legendary team were finally on the right track, and last Sunday in Spain proved it beyond any doubt.

Hamilton was a comfortable winner as he claimed his first victory of the red, but it was the manner in which the weekend unfolded which was most impressive.

On Sunday Ferrari managed to deliver the car and race strategy Hamilton needed, and he capitalised with a peerless performance to take top spot on the podium.

But perhaps the MOST impressive part of the whole weekend had come 24 hours earlier in qualifying, as Hamilton claimed a front row spot, just 0.064 seconds behind pole sitter George Russell of Mercedes. If you look even deeper still, there was something even more encouraging.

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Ferrari qualifying performance was impressive

Former Ferrari race engineer Rob Smedley highlighted it during the latest High Performance Racing podcast, pinpointing the fact that Lewis was actually ahead of Russell until the Mercedes man turned things around very late in the lap.

Smedley said of Ferrari’s impressive qualifying performance: “He was a tenth up before the last corner on my dark web data, the engineer’s dark web.”

So this was not just superior race strategy and a well-timed virtual safety car which helped Ferrari dethrone a Mercedes team which had won the first six races of the 2026 season. It was much more than that, a raft of upgrades which clearly went a long way to levelling the playing field.

Smedley added: “I don’t think anything seismic has changed because it never does that in Formula 1 – things ebb and flow. Ferrari had a very very good car in Monte Carlo, you saw them with a decent car. They brought a package to Barcelona and it was a very good car.”

2026 Pecking order will be challenged again

The former Ferrari man expects the pecking order to be challenged on an ongoing basis for the rest of the season as those controversial new regulations continue to bed in.

“Now, will they have the best car at the end of the season? Maybe, maybe not – it would be ridiculous to try and call that here now. Because everybody is in this very early stages of development.

“But things are changing – we talked about this from our very first show. With a rule set as immature as this, this will continue to change throughout the season. It’s exciting and it’s good for the fans.”

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