Verstappen fires warning shot after Red Bull's scrappy Hungary weekend

Red Bull Racing had one of their worst weekends in recent memory at a error-strewn Hungarian Grand Prix, prompting Max Verstappen to warn his team to get their act together.

The Dutchman finished fifth, two places ahead of Sergio Perez, but it only tells half the story of what was an eye-opening event for the Tilbrook team.

Perez - under pressure to perform as rumours mount about his future at the team beyond the summer break - crashed again in qualifying to start near the back, but at the front, Verstappen, starting third, moved up to second though passed Lando Norris off track and was forced to give the position back, much to his chagrin.

As Perez tried to climb through the field on an alternative strategy, Verstappen’s mood only soured as he was undercut by those around him, dropping to fourth as the McLarens led the way. Complaining about the brakes and control in the corners of his RB20, Verstappen tried to pass Lewis Hamilton for third but ran wide, before attempting a dive bomb into the first corner, colliding with the Mercedes - a crash later deemed a racing incident - and dropping him back to fifth.

While Perez finished seventh on his recovery drive, it was a far cry from the dominance Red Bull had early in the season, prompting Verstappen to fire a warning to his team heading into the second-half of the season.

“We need to do a better job,” he said afterwards. “Maybe some people are not on the same wavelength. It's as severe as it is. I knew it was going to be a difficult race and beating McLaren would be tough but you at least need to get a P3 over the line and even that we couldn't do.”

Now without a win in three races, Verstappen has seen his championship lead over Norris cut to 76 points, with the McLaren clearly the now the fastest in the field.

For Perez, it was a solid recovery on race day, but once again he was under the spotlight for his crash in qualifying. The Mexican though praised his mechanics for rebuilding his car in time for the race.

He said: “The team did an incredible job to get the car on track today after my crash, I need to maximise my own performance to match their hard work. The only thing that matters to me is my team and the people working with me, I have to give my very best to them because they deserve it.

“I am here keeping my head down; I will keep improving and get back to my form. I think we have the pace to fight at the front, we showed it today and it is just a matter of time until we are back on the podium.”