“Didn’t get any grip,” Max Verstappen perplexed over difficult FP2 outing at Australian GP

Max Verstappen was confused over Red Bull's newfound issues during free practice at the Australian GP on Friday.

“Didn’t get any grip,” Max Verstappen perplexed over difficult FP2 outing at Australian GP

Christian Horner and Max Verstappen (via F1)

Max Verstappen and Red Bull embrace themselves for a challenging 2025 campaign after a difficult season last year. Milton Keynes faces the task of matching the likes of McLaren and Ferrari, who have made impressive progress since last year. Now, Verstappen has admitted that things remain tough for the team after free practice at the Australian GP.

The four-time world champion gave mixed reactions following preseason testing in Bahrain. Initially, Red Bull seemed to have made much-needed progress over fixing its dreadful balance issues from last season. However, Verstappen later on admitted that the Austrian giant expected more from the RB21. So much so, that the Dutch driver made it clear that Milton Keynes will not have the fastest car this year.

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Friday at Albert Park did not go great for Max Verstappen. The 27-year-old finished fifth in FP1 and then dropped to seventh for the second session. Meanwhile Verstappen’s teammate Liam Lawson could only manage P16 and P17 finishes in the two practice sessions.

FS Video

The 27-year-old insisted that the balance of the RB21 wasn’t entirely wrong during the sessions. However, Verstappen was confused over not getting any real grip from the car. He attributed these struggles to be the reason for not being on par with the likes of McLaren. Max Verstappen reckoned that these were not major balance issues, yet this could make it even more difficult for Red Bull to solve.

The balance wasn’t really wrong, but somehow we didn’t get any grip and it was difficult. That’s why we’re not really at the top now. These are not really big balance problems, so it’s going to be difficult to solve.

Max Verstappen said on his website

Max Verstappen not surprised over Australian GP issues

Despite the newfound issues with the Red Bull RB21, Max Verstappen reckoned that he was not caught off-guard. The reigning world champion claimed that he was not really surprised by the pace of the car this weekend. Verstappen pointed out that Milton Keynes has not had the easiest of runs at Albert Park since the track was resurfaced in 2022.

It’s not that I didn’t expect this. I’m not positively or negatively surprised by our speed.

Max Verstappen noted
Max Verstappen driving the Red Bull RB21
Max Verstappen driving the Red Bull RB21 (image via F10

Though, he pointed out that the conditions are the same for everyone. Nevertheless, the 27-year-old asserted that there was work to do in the Red Bull garage. Verstappen emphasized that the team needs to find more speed before Qualifying if it really wants to have a shot at winning the first race of the season.

We haven’t performed well here in Australia since the new asphalt was laid. That doesn’t help us, but that’s the same for everyone, of course. So we’ll have to find a bit more speed, because now we’re not enough to compete at the front

Max Verstappen explained

The Australian GP has become a challenging race for Red Bull in recent years. Last year, then-Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz won the race at Albert Park while Max Verstappen was forced to retire. The Dutch driver would hope to bounce back this weekend. Though, it seems that he might struggle to even get on the podium.

McLaren and Ferrari set the pace at Australian GP

Reigning world champions McLaren have had a decent start to the Melbourne race weekend. Lando Norris kicked things off in style after topping the timesheets in Free Practice 1. While Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc was the quickest driver during the next session.

Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc (via Sky Sports)
Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc (via Sky Sports)

The two teams seemed to be the quickest on Friday with Red Bull and Mercedes lagging behind. McLaren even had both its cars within the Top 3 in FP2. However, the difference is still quite less with many predicting a close four-way battle on Sunday.

Red Bull on the other hand might already be planning to limit its damage over the weekend. Max Verstappen might shift his plans from fighting for victory, to getting the best result possible on Sunday. Although, Milton Keynes will be working tirelessly in order to extract more pace from the RB21 before Qualifying.

Max Verstappen’s orange army will be hoping that the Dutch driver still has an ace up his sleeves. The reigning world champion does have the capability to put in extraordinary lap times when needed. As such, one cannot rule out Verstappen completely just yet.