Is Max Verstappen going through the worst run of results in his F1 career? All you need to know

Four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen has struggled with the RB21 since the onset of the 2025 season. The Dutchman hasn't won a race since the Emilia Romagna GP and has even struggled to get onto the podium in the last four races. Let's have a look at whether this is the Dutchman's worst-ever run in F1.

Max Verstappen has continuously complained about the balance of the RB21 and its working window with the tires. Yet, the Red Bull driver was somehow able to put the car in a position to win the race, and has won two races since the start of the season.

Since the 2025 Imola GP, Verstappen has only managed to stand on the podium once, which was at the Canadian GP, where Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris came together. The Dutchman did manage to win the Sprint Race at Spa, but only because there weren't any pit stops and he opted for a low downforce setup, which prevented the McLaren any passing opportunities.

In the last seven races, Max Verstappen has only scored 55 points (excluding the Sprint race points), which included a DNF at the Austrian GP, where Kimi Antonelli crashed into the Dutchman.

Daniel Valente 🏎️

@F1GuyDan

Max Verstappen has only 1 podium over his last 7 races 😬 🇲🇨- P4 🇪🇸- P10 🇨🇦- P2 🇦🇹- DNF 🇬🇧- P5 🇧🇪- P4 🇭🇺- P9

While this points tally isn't Verstappen-like, the Red Bull driver has had significantly the worst run of results in F1 during the early part of his career. During his debut season in 2015 with Toro Rosso, Max Verstappen scored just 26 points in the first 12 races of the season. However, it was with a team towards the back end of the performance index.

Considering the results since Verstappen made a move to Red Bull, his worst run came in 2017 when the first half of the season was plagued with reliability issues. Max Verstappen only scored 45 points in the first 9 races of the 2017 season. The results included one podium, three P5 finishes, and five retirements.

While the current run of form isn't the worst that Verstappen has faced in his career or since he moved to Red Bull, it is his worst run since he won since the new regulations were introduced for 2022.

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Max Verstappen “accepts” Red Bull’s position amid the recent struggles

Max Verstappen came into the 2025 Hungarian GP with the question of his Red Bull future hanging over his head. The Dutchman confirmed that he'll be racing with the Milton Keynes-based outfit in 2026. Commenting on the performance of the RB21, Verstappen suggested that he's been through phases where he hasn't had the faster car and has accepted the same.

“You also just have to accept where you're at. Yeah, we are not the quickest at the moment, but we're also not the slowest. We always want to be better, and actually that was the same when we were winning. Now we're not winning that much,” said Max Verstappen (via F1)

“We just try to focus on understanding the car a bit better, where we can find our time, because of course next year there's new regulations, but I think there's still a lot to learn also this year,” he added

Verstappen was 97 points away from the championship leader, Oscar Piastri, going into the summer break, and is arguably out of the title contention as teams shift focus to the 2026 car.