The four-time world champion has been one of the most vocal detractors of the 2026 rules, describing the cars as “Formula E on steroids” and likening the racing to “Mario Kart” following a difficult start to the season.
Verstappen’s frustrations have been compounded by results, with a sixth-place finish in Australia followed by a non-finish in China, leaving him with just eight points from the opening two rounds.
But Steiner believes the criticism says more about Red Bull’s current form than the regulations themselves.
“It’s not the fault of the regulations [for Max’s retirement], that’s the fault of the team if the car cannot start,” he told talkSPORT.
“It’s like the two McLarens not starting, that has not happened for a long time that two cars cannot even start a race.
“You cannot blame the regulations because most of the other cars started the race, except for [Gabriel] Bortoleto and [Alex] Albon.
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“Max is not happy because the car is not where he likes it to be.”
The former Haas team boss pointed to the challenge of Red Bull’s new in-house power unit, developed with Ford, as a key factor behind the team’s early struggles.
“Red Bull have a brand new engine and it’s advanced technology, it takes some time for the engineers to get used to,” Steiner added.
“I think I’m actually surprised how the new engine manufacturers like Ford and Audi have done, so it will improve after a little bit of time.”
Steiner was blunt in his assessment of Verstappen’s reaction to the situation.
“Max always throws the toys out of the pram when it doesn’t go his way.”
Despite complaints from some drivers about energy harvesting, increased lap times and the nature of overtaking, Steiner backed the new regulations and the racing they have produced so far.
“The racing was pretty good,” he said.
“Obviously, people like Max maybe don’t like change, and he’s not used to not being in one of the best cars, so that doesn’t help his mood to like the new regulations.
“I think they are actually pretty good. They will develop over time. All the teams are just learning at the moment what is going on, because it’s an advanced technology.
“But the racing was good, and that’s the most important thing.”
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