Red Bull driver Max Verstappen has retired from the Austrian Grand Prix after an opening-lap collision with Andrea Kimi Antonelli’s Mercedes.
Verstappen, a five-time winner at the Red Bull Ring, was out of position on the grid in Austria after a spin for Alpine driver Pierre Gasly in qualifying, with the subsequent yellow flags leaving him down in seventh on the grid.
Max Verstappen retires from Austrian GP after first-lap clash with Andrea Kimi Antonelli
The Red Bull driver was hit at Turn 3 by Antonelli, who midjudged his braking point into the slow right hander while battling Liam Lawson and Gabriel Bortoleto.
Both drivers were out on the spot as the Safety Car was called.
Verstappen said over team radio: “I’m out. I got hit like crazy. F**king idiots.”
Antonelli told Mercedes: “Sorry about that. Locked the rear. Sorry.”
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Verstappen’s early exit marks his first DNF since the 2023 Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, where he retired with a brake issue.
It ends a run of 31 consecutive points finishes for the reigning four-time World Champion, which began with his victory at Japan 2024.
Antonelli has now retired from three of the last five races having suffered technical failures at the recent Emilia Romagna and Spanish grands prix.
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Verstappen’s clash with Antonelli comes in the week he has been linked with a move for Mercedes for F1 2026, potentially as a replacement for George Russell.
In an interview ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix, Russell, who is out of the contract at the end of this season, claimed that negotiations to take Verstappen to Mercedes for next year are “ongoing.”
He said: “As Mercedes, they want to be back on top.
“And if you’re going to be back on top you need to make sure you’ve got the best drivers, the best engineers, the best pit crew and that’s what Mercedes are chasing.
“So it’s only normal that conversations with the likes of Verstappen are ongoing.
“But from my side, if I’m performing as I’m doing, what have I got to be concerned about? There are two seats in every Formula 1 team.”
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