Max Verstappen finished the Miami GP Formula 1 Sprint qualifying with high spirits. On this Friday (1), by finishing fifth on the grid, he pointed out a ‘really positive step’ for Red Bull with the RB22.
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For the race on Saturday, 2, in the Hard Rock Stadium area, the four-time world champion will start ahead of George Russell and Lewis Hamilton, respectively.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1, the Dutchman pointed out how the Austrian team managed to cut a lot of their gap to Mercedes. “It feels more consistent. Of course, there are still things we are working on, but it was a really positive step for us. You know, in the last races we were more than a second behind. I would say now we have practically halved that gap, so that’s positive,” he said.
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“We are still very weak in the first sector, which is mainly high speed, so we know we need to work on that. But yes, the rest seemed a bit more cohesive, so I’m a bit more satisfied with that. At least it seems like we managed to distance ourselves a bit from the midfield pack, so to speak,” he continued.
Also, Verstappen was asked about having said in the past how the RB22 was “impossible to drive” at the Chinese GP. “It feels a bit more normal, a bit more cohesive. It’s still not where I want it to be, obviously, but at least it’s allowing me to trust it a bit more and basically I can get a bit more lap time out of it,” he concluded.
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