Formula 1

Verstappen’s verdict on Red Bull testing

Published

4 weeks ago

24/02/2023

Max Verstappen, the current Formula One World Champion, has concluded his final test outing with Red Bull Racing, and he shared his feedback on the team’s performance.

Max Verstappen continued to perform well on the second day of winter testing in Bahrain, although he did encounter some issues in the afternoon.

Nevertheless, he managed to secure the second-fastest time, and he looks back on his part in the winter test with satisfaction. On the final day of testing, Verstappen took over the RB19 from Sergio Perez in the afternoon session after a technical issue slowed the team’s progress earlier in the day.

Despite this setback, Verstappen felt that the day went well overall, and he expressed his contentment with how his part of the winter test went. The only driver who managed to set a faster time on the second day was Guanyu Zhou, but it’s worth noting that he did so using two compounds softer than Verstappen.

Sergio Perez will be the sole driver for the final day of testing on Saturday as Max Verstappen’s testing schedule came to an end after Friday’s session. The Red Bull car will be exclusively handled by Perez on the concluding day.

Verstappen expresses a “positive” outlook as he prepares to defend his title from last year, which he claimed in a dominant manner.

On Friday, the Dutchman had exclusive use of the Red Bull car for the entire day’s running, and he later hopped back behind the wheel in the afternoon.

Throughout the testing period, Verstappen completed a total of 204 laps, with 47 of those being on Friday.

“After the session, Verstappen stated, “Today we concentrated on the finer details and made small incremental improvements.”

Verstappen further added, “Once again, the car responded excellently to all our tweaks. We gained valuable insights for the upcoming weekend and for future races as well.”

“I’m extremely satisfied with the testing period as I felt comfortable and could push instantly every time I got behind the wheel,” Verstappen remarked.

Verstappen credited the team back at the factory for their hard work throughout the winter and even last year in preparing the car they have now, saying, “They deserve a massive credit for it.”

Verstappen expressed his satisfaction in seeing the car’s performance on the track and added, “We’ll have to wait and see how fast we are next week, but I’m feeling positive.”

Sergio Perez, Verstappen’s teammate, made his 2023 testing debut on Friday and was impressed with the new car’s performance.

Perez shared his experience, saying, “I was delighted to be back behind the wheel of the RB19 this morning. Our main focus was on the long run to ensure the car’s reliability, which was our top priority.”

Perez stated that the car had a good pace and felt good, expressing his hope that they could further fine-tune the vehicle on Saturday.

Perez noted that there are minor differences from the RB18, mainly due to the changes in the tyres. However, he added that, overall, the new car is quite similar to the previous version.

Perez expressed his contentment with the car and felt that they were in a good position. He now eagerly anticipates getting a full day of testing in the car on Saturday.

Perez shared the team’s plan for the final day of testing, saying, “We will be conducting some useful simulations for the race and focus on preparing for the qualifying as much as possible.”

Verstappen verdict on Red Bull testing Verstappen verdict on Red Bull testing Verstappen verdict on Red Bull testing