Red Bull's "Paper Car" Just Won. Is It Actually Fixed?

A month ago, Max Verstappen called the Red Bull RB22 a car "made of paper". At Sepang, it took pole and won. So is Red Bull's car actually fixed, or did Mercedes just have a bad weekend? I went through the official F1 timing data from qualifying and the race, lap by lap and sector by sector. Some of it backs up the headlines. Some of it doesn't. In this video: Why Max's season turned around after Red Bull's Austria upgrade Where Max beat Mercedes at Sepang: the corners, not the straights What went wrong with Mercedes' Sepang upgrade Was it the car, the track, or Max? Are Red Bull's degradation and power unit problems really fixed? Can Verstappen keep winning for the rest of the 2026 season? ⏱️ CHAPTERS 0:00 Intro 0:30 The paper car 1:16 The turnaround nobody noticed 2:15 How Max won Sepang 3:39 Mercedes' upgrade gamble 4:51 The track, the driver, or both? 6:01 Is the paper car fixed? 6:58 Flash in the pan? Which Red Bull shows up in Singapore: the one that wins, or the one that breaks? Let me know in the comments 👇 🔔 Subscribe to RiceReacts for F1 news, data and race weekend reaction. 🛒 F1 GEAR AND READS (affiliate links) 🏎️ LEGO Technic and Speed Champions F1 cars: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lego+f1+... 🧢 Red Bull Racing team cap: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=red+bull... 🧢 Scuderia Ferrari Lewis Hamilton cap: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=ferrari+... 🏁 1:43 F1 model cars: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=f1+model... 🎮 F1 25 video game: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=f1+25+ga... 🕹️ Racing wheel and pedals for sim racing: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=logitech... 📖 Adrian Newey, How to Build a Car: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=adrian+n... 📖 Max Verstappen books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=max+vers... 📖 Lewis Hamilton books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lewis+ha... As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Buying through these links costs you nothing extra and helps support the channel. Data: official F1 timing data, 2026 Bahrain Grand Prix in Malaysia (Sepang). Quotes and background from team and media reports. RiceReacts is an independent fan channel and is not affiliated with Formula 1, the FIA, or any F1 team. #F1 #MaxVerstappen #RedBull