'Now you're quiet, Jos Verstappen?' Up, Down in Belgium

So it really is over, the deed is done.

As one of the most successful, entertaining – and controversial – team bosses is ejected for being too much, well, of himself, so Red Bull enters its LinkedIn era. It’s all clean press statements, corporate suits and that skin-crawling “it’s all about the can” mission statement from here.

Apparently Red Bull has decided it doesn’t like the fact that everyone who isn’t Dutch or Austrian sees it as the villain, following years of playing the villain. Milton Keynes (the team, not the place, but maybe also the place) used to revel in that – now it doesn’t.

Red Bull has the best driver in the world currently. If it loses him, like Ferrari with Prost in ’91, and McLaren with Senna two years later, it will be truly stuffed – and spend whole seasons on end in the doldrums.

Nico Rosberg is an absolute menace 😭😭

asking Jos about Horner

Jos: “I have nothing to say”

Nico: “NOW you’re quiet??!”pic.twitter.com/GBu7NgP7pb

— 🎭 z (@rbrzoe) July 27, 2025

Therefore, as Sky broadcaster Martin Brundle pointed out in last weekend’s pre-race show, ever since the team started to look a bit shaky at the start of last season and risked losing Verstappen in a 200mph sulk, his dad Jos finally has become the boss, calling the shots henceforth.

When Brundle and green tech bro/ex-F1 champ Nico Rosberg put to him in as many words “you got what you wanted, then?” Jos didn’t have much to say.

Indeed, because he got what he wanted.

Going Up – Britney

Rosberg is brilliant as a pundit in the most old-school of ways, in that he’s irritating, never knows when to put a sock in it, and keeps asking questions.

Enjoy it while it lasts, before he upsets someone by querying too much about their controversial no-carb diet or something else fascinating.

Going Down – Sour-ber

One race after being a strategy genius across a stream of pit calls, the Hulk and his green team manage to eject themselves out of the top 10 in one move – opting for an extra pit stop while everyone else decided to stick it out on one. Nice.

Going Up – Left out to dry

“You will never see these classic kind of wet races any more,” was Verstappen’s assessment after the race directors waited almost till Monday to make sure the track was absolutely bone dry.

He might just be right.

Going Down – Murky weather

If the clouds in the sky match the miserable Mercedes livery, that usually means that Brackley’s quids-in for a good result.

Not so in Belgium.

“We need to really understand what is going on and why we’ve taken such a step backwards, because these conditions today, you would argue, are ideal for us in our car, and once again, it’s been the worst performance of the season,” cried Formula Partridge (George Russell).

Going Up – Pierre-less

Pierre Gasly managed to wrestle yet another another point out of his recalcitrant Enstone GP car.

Someone get this man in an, err, Red Bull?

Going Down – Silverstone sickness

It looked for a moment like Aston’s new interim upgrades (it’s all about 2026 really) might help wipe a bit of the green egg off its face in Spa.

It wasn’t to be, with Stroll’s 14th and Alonso’s 17th (i.e. not finishing dead last) coming more out of everyone else ineptitude rather than their own performances.

Going Up – Red Rocket

Hamilton scythed through the field until getting caught up behind the pesky Williams of Alex Albon.

It really was a joy to watch up to that point.

Going Down – Sorry Tsunoda

Tsunoda hasn’t scored a point for seven races. Still arguably a better stretch than the last seven Red Bull races of Messrs Perez and Lawson who came before him.