Max Verstappen, the three-time world champion, likened his experience at the Australian Grand Prix to driving “with the handbrake on” after he had to retire due to smoke emanating from his Red Bull.
Despite starting from pole position and being heavily favored to secure his third victory of the season following dominant performances in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, the Dutch driver’s race took a drastic turn for the worse.
Almost immediately, he was overtaken by Carlos Sainz of Ferrari on the second lap, and his race came to an abrupt end when his brakes seized up. Verstappen commented, “What we can see so far from the data is that as soon as the lights went off, the right-rear brake just stuck on.”