Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen described as 'time bomb' amid Red Bull struggles

Max Verstappen may be the reigning Formula 1 world champion, but things are looking far less rosy for him so far this season.

The Dutchman has failed to finish in two of the first three races and is already 46 points behind drivers championship leader Charles Leclerc.

The 24-year-old did win the second race in Saudi Arabia, but reliability issues have already forced him to retire twice, costing him 36 valuable points while also raising questions about his ability to retain the title.

Red Bull chief Helmut Marko revealed that Verstappen is already extremely frustrated by the circumstances, describing him as a “time bomb” who could go off if the team doesn’t “win again soon”.

As reported by The Sun, Marko told Austria’s ORF: “With the set-up of the car, you sometimes lack the confidence to maintain his [Verstappen’s] extreme driving style.

“You can see that this makes Checo [Perez] closer to him than in the past.

“If we don’t win again soon, then he is indeed a time bomb!”

Verstappen, who is known for the occasional outburst, is, however, a lot calmer these days according to Marco.

“After his retirement, he returned to the pit box and we discussed things calmly.

“However, in this case, we knew we could run into that problem, because we also had to deal with that in qualifying, so it didn’t come out of the blue in that regard.

“He is an emotional and passionate driver who will always give his opinion.

“But, in my view, he is a lot calmer than in the past.”

Verstappen will have an opportunity to get back on track this weekend when the circuit heads to Imola for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix.

Leclerc will have other ideas though having dramatically secured victory in the opening race of the season in Bahrain before