Max Verstappen has addressed Red Bull’s lack of a low-downforce rear wing, something that has become a defining talking point at the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

The Dutchman struggled on the opening night of the Sin City round, but did better during Friday’s run.

He will be in fifth place at the Nevada race, alongside the F1 drivers’ title rival, Lando Norris. As long as he does not lose more than two points of his 62-point lead, he will be crowned champion for the fourth time in a row at the end of the Grand Prix.

Earlier this weekend it was incorrectly reported that Red Bull had brought the wrong rear wing to Las Vegas, which would have been a high-profile blunder.

The truth, however, is that unlike rival F1 teams, the Milton Keynes team do not have a dedicated low-drag rear wing option to call upon at circuits such as the Las Vegas Strip Circuit and Monza.

It has been an active decision by the team, with other areas being prioritized under cost cap constraints since the current generation of ground effect cars were introduced almost three years ago.

“We chose not to make one,” Verstappen told the media, among others RacingNews365. ‘We don’t have one.

“This is from 2022,” he added. “I don’t think we ever thought we’d keep it this low. And then, with the budget cap, you choose your priorities and that’s where we go.

“(We) would have liked a lower downforce wing, or at least a different, more efficient shape.”

The three-time F1 driver champion admitted that Red Bull will consider its options for 2025, while minimizing the likelihood in case of tact.

“It’s something we’ll look at, but on the other hand there’s only one year left with these rules and I don’t know if it makes sense (to produce one now),” he mused.

Yet Verstappen did not shy away from questioning the logic of the approach, arguing that Red Bull has thereby sacrificed two of the 24 rounds on the F1 calendar: “But for me at least it feels a bit like we throw away two race weekends like this.”

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