Three-time world champion Max Verstappen admitted that he had difficulty carrying out two free practice sessions (FP) on the first day of the Las Vegas GP in Nevada, United States (US), Friday (22/11).
After finishing fifth in FP1, Verstappen was unable to maintain and improve his performance by only finishing
FP2 session in 17th position.
“For me, this (performance) is very closely related to the choice of tires. The balance of the car doesn’t feel too wrong, it’s just that we don’t have grip. It feels like driving on ice at the moment,” said Verstappen, quoted from the official Formula 1 website.
Regarding tire use, the Dutch racer chose soft tires in FP2 and apparently this option was not very effective on the Las Vegas Street Circuit.
It only recorded one lap before Alexander Albon (Williams) had an incident and the red flag was waved in the middle of the second practice session.
“The track was slippery. I think we put a lot of effort into making (the choice of) tires work well,” said Verstappen.
His teammate, Sergio Perez, experienced a similar experience, who thought that Red Bull’s performance could have been better.
“I think we have to work hard to really try to take advantage of everything, because we’re not where we are yet
want,” said Perez.
Verstappen heads into the weekend with a 62-point lead over nearest rival, McLaren’s Lando Norris.
If Verstappen wins the Las Vegas GP, the opportunity to become world champion for the fourth time is increasingly wide open.
Red Bull is third in the constructors’ standings behind Ferrari and McLaren. (Ant/Z-1)
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