Max Verstappen and Red Bull are in retreat as the Formula 1 season resumes in Texas. The series returns from a month-long autumn break at the United States Grand Prix with the Dutch driver still leading the championship.

Amid the off-track bib saga, Red Bull delivered on the track as Max Verstappen took F1 Sprint pole at the US GP.

Verstappen has won all three previous sprint races this season and has won the main race in Austin the last three years. But he hasn't won this season since the Spanish Grand Prix on June 23 and has earned just three podium finishes in that span. Verstappen at times has described his once dominant car as “undrivable” and a “monster.”