In twelve months of F1, almost everything has changed at Red Bull. Last year, in China, Verstappen was driving a car that could still be considered the benchmark of the category, with which the Dutchman dominated the track. The RB21 is a very complicated car, according to the world champion, who, despite putting all his talent on display, struggles to keep pace with the competition.
It has now become a futile exercise to look to the other side of the garage. All of Max’s teammates have been outperformed by the driver from Hasselt. But when the car doesn’t allow Jos’s son to fight for victory, it was inevitable that the teammate would pay the price beyond his own shortcomings. Nothing different from what we have seen could have happened.
However, the four-time world champion is fighting like a lion, securing a podium in the Sprint Race, won by Lewis Hamilton, even closing the gap at the top of the driver standings thanks to Lando Norris‘s lackluster performance. However, it was clear that with this F1 car, there is no hope of glory, at least for the moment.
Problems with the tires
While the Dutch ace was able to pull a rabbit out of the hat in qualifying, during the 100 km Sprint Race, even tire management only worked up to a point, as he had to push too much. The expected step forward with the tires, thanks to the team’s work, did not function properly this time. This issue affected almost all the cars, but it was more progressive on the car number 1.
In the final stages of the mini-race, Russell and Leclerc caught up to the RB21’s exhausts. Engaged in a head-to-head duel, they couldn’t manage to beat the four-time world champion. Even in qualifying, the gap between the two RB21s was huge. Lawson couldn’t make it out of Q1, setting a time seven-tenths slower than his teammate. What made the situation embarrassing was the performance of the Racing Bulls team’s drivers.
The beginning of dissatisfaction
Without a doubt, the surprise of qualifying was the result from the Faenza team. We’re talking about the “B” team, which remains owned by Red Bull, although it has some technical independence and can choose different solutions. Racing Bulls managed to place two drivers in the top ten. Hadjar set a time more than one second faster than the New Zealander in Q1.
In hindsight, Yuki Tsunoda’s elimination wasn’t a missed opportunity, given the big difficulties Liam Lawson is facing. Verstappen confirmed this feeling. The Dutch driver admitted that the RB21 is a very complicated car and that his teammate would definitely be faster driving one of the Faenza team’s cars.
A statement that, by transitive property, could imply that the VCARB02 is easier to drive than the RB21. This seems to emerge from Verstappen’s reflection. With his usual frankness, the 1997-born champion is beginning to express his dissatisfaction, and it couldn’t be any other way, considering the level of competitiveness that fell short of the expectations he had set.
No grounds for hope
Looking ahead to the race, thinking about tomorrow, any hope should be put aside, at least according to what Jos’s son stated after qualifying. The Dutchman clarified that they are not fast enough. His lap went well, but he couldn’t maintain consistent balance with the car. It was a very tough session, much more than expected, as he was convinced that the feedback from yesterday would help him.
The effort to do better is there. However, it seems that relying solely on Verstappen’s talent is not the wisest move. Essentially, the Dutchman admitted what has become evident: with his great driving skill, he can make up for the car’s shortcomings in qualifying, which is fine, but the unpredictability of the Red Bull RB21 doesn’t allow for the necessary consistency in race pace.
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