Engine problem cause for Verstappen Monaco GP retirement
8th June 2026Red Bull has confirmed an engine problem was the cause of Max Verstappen’s untimely retirement at the Monaco Grand Prix, which saw the four-time champion retire on the first lap.
Feature image credit: Getty Images // Red Bull Content Pool
Verstappen was set to start the Monaco GP from the front row of the grid, alongside eventual race winner – and Mercedes championship leader – Kimi Antonelli. However, when the lights went out, Verstappen bogged down off the line and was immediately overtaken by the field.
After an immediate outburst of frustration, the Dutch world champion was ordered to bring the car back to the pit lane to retire, ending his afternoon before it even started.
Following the Monaco Grand Prix, Red Bull Team Principal, Laurent Mekies, has confirmed that it was an engine problem that killed any chance of a good result for the two-time Monaco winner. He said:
“On the other side of the garage, we lost Max’s car straightaway with an engine issue. It was hard to take as he had incredible pace all weekend.
“It’s frustrating when you miss out on a big points score, but that’s part of the game, and we can only apology to him.”
Ahead of the Monaco GP, Verstappen has explained that there was a precursor to the event, ahead of his engine failure. The four-time world champion acknowledged that he could feel something off with the car, and ‘the pre-start was terrible.’
While there is no clear indicator to what has gone wrong right now, Verstappen has said the end result was a shame and a disappointing result for what had been a good weekend.
“We don’t know what happened today but we think the issue was due to an engine problem,” Verstappen said. “During the formation lap I could feel that something was off and the pre-start was terrible.
“There was no consistency and then, at the start, the engine just dropped out. I dropped the clutch and it went dead and had no power. When I got a bit more power back, unfortunately it was messed up so I had to bring it back slowly.
“It was such a shame for us as everything was going really well up to that point. We felt great in the car all weekend and to come out with no points and to finish the race like this when you do everything so well as a team is of course disappointing.”
Read more Formula 1 here:
- Perez penalty costs Cadillac first F1 point at Monaco GP
- Alpine lodge Right of Review after Monaco GP speeding penalties
- Antonelli dominates fifth win in a row ahead of Hamilton at Monaco GP
- ‘It didn’t click’ Russell says after qualifying P6 for Monaco GP
- Antonelli ‘delivering as a driver’ says Verstappen ahead of Monaco GP
- Antonelli pips Verstappen to seal Monaco Grand Prix pole
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Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.
I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
Kamron Kent
Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.
