Max Verstappen said his RB22 was undrivable following Chinese Grand Prix qualifying

"We changed a lot on the car, and it makes zero difference," the four-time world champion told reporters after setting a fastest lap ​that was around one second slower than pole-sitter ​Kimi Antonelli, with the two Mercedes cars securing a ⁠front row lockout as George Russell qualified second following car trouble.

The Dutchman added: "The whole weekend we've been off, the car is ​completely undriveable. Every lap is like survival."

The Red Bull Racing driver sunk to as low as 14th place after having qualified eighth in Saturday's earlier 19-lap sprint race around the Shanghai International Circuit, finally finishing ​in 9th and behind sister team Racing Bulls' Liam Lawson.

"It's ​incredibly tough to drive. There's no balance, I cannot lean on the car, ‌every ⁠lap is a fight," the 71-times grand prix winner told Sky Sports F1, having come into the weekend hoping to make more of an impact after making his way from the back of the ​grid to finish ​sixth at ⁠the previous race in Australia.

This is the first season Red Bull have run their own engine, having ​partnered with Ford, which ended a very successful ​six-year ⁠streak with Honda.

Verstappen said the new power unit was partly to blame, but added that the poor performance was down to a ⁠multitude ​of factors.

"From lap one of these new ​regulations, I have not enjoyed this car for sure," he added. "It's not going to ​be a fun race."

Verstappen has been critical of the new-for-2026 F1 cars so far and his recent struggles will not be helping change his mind about them. (Reporting by Joe Cash, Additional reporting by GrandPrix247)