Only ninth in FP2 at Monza, Max Verstappen acknowledges that Red Bull remains far from the leaders. The Dutchman nevertheless hopes to improve on Saturday.
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Weekends follow one another and difficulties persist for Red Bull. One week after a complicated Dutch Grand Prix, Max Verstappen did not really find his smile again during his first track appearance at Monza.
The four-time world champion only participated in FP2 on Friday, as he had given up his RB22 to Ayumu Iwasa during the first session so that Red Bull could fulfill its young driver running obligations. With only 60 minutes at his disposal, Verstappen had to quickly get his bearings on a circuit where his car once again seems to lack performance.
The Dutchman ultimately only posted the ninth fastest time in the second session, behind the main front-running teams but also Arvid Lindblad and Oliver Bearman.
Verstappen struggles to find the right balance
Beyond the ranking, it is especially the behavior of the RB22 that worries Verstappen. The 28-year-old driver explains that he encountered difficulties finding a satisfactory compromise in the different types of corners at Monza.
“It was difficult to find the right balance with the car today and we will have to work on that for tomorrow to find a bit more time per lap,” he admits.
This observation confirms the difficulties encountered by Red Bull since the beginning of the season. The car still lacks consistency and Verstappen regularly has to deal with a delicate balance to master.
The situation is all the more complicated because the Dutchman was unable to take advantage of FP1 to test different settings. He will therefore have to rely on FP3 to validate the changes prepared overnight.
“Our gap remains significant”
Verstappen does not try to downplay Red Bull’s delay.
Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren still seem to have an advantage, and Friday’s times show that the Austrian team remains behind for now.
“Our gap remains significant compared to the leading drivers, but I hope we can reduce it a bit in qualifying over one lap,” Verstappen explains.
At Monza, however, Red Bull could benefit from a particularly important factor: slipstreaming. The long straights of the Italian circuit allow for gaining precious time when a driver manages to position themselves at the right distance behind another car.
Liam Lawson also confirmed that Red Bull would discuss a plan between its two drivers for qualifying. A strategy that could allow Verstappen to compensate for part of the intrinsic deficit of his RB22.
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More hope for the race
While Verstappen hopes to improve over one lap, he also thinks that Red Bull could get closer to the leaders over long stints. However, he remains cautious, as race simulations are more difficult to interpret.
“I hope we will be even closer in the race and that everything will work a bit better over long stints, but it is harder to predict,” he emphasizes.
The team will therefore have to analyze the data collected by Verstappen but also that of Lawson, who dedicated a large part of FP2 to working on long stints with soft and hard tires.
This information could allow Red Bull to better understand the behavior of the RB22 with more fuel and prepare a more effective setup for Sunday.
A crucial night of work for Red Bull
Before thinking about the race, the engineers will mainly try to correct the car’s balance. Verstappen believes there is still room for improvement if Red Bull manages to make the car work more harmoniously in the different corners.
“We will look at what we can do with the car overnight to see if we can make some positive changes and find the right balance in the corners,” he explains.
The Dutchman also puts his shortened day into perspective and is glad to have given his place to Iwasa during FP1.
“Of course, I only participated in FP2 today, but it was good that Ayumu had the chance to drive.”
Red Bull now has one last practice session to try to get Verstappen back in the game. FP3 will allow measuring the effectiveness of the changes made before a qualifying session that promises to be particularly tight.
Verstappen does not expect to miraculously erase Red Bull’s delay, but he remains hopeful of reducing the gap. Between the adjustments made overnight and the importance of slipstreaming at Monza, the Dutchman still hopes to find a few precious tenths before qualifying.
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