Max Verstappen admits ‘very difficult’ to find right balance for Red Bull after Friday at Belgian GP

Max Verstappen claimed that Red Bull did not have the easiest of sessions on Friday at Spa-Francorchamps.

Max Verstappen admits ‘very difficult’ to find right balance for Red Bull after Friday at Belgian GP

Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)

The 2024 Formula 1 season heads towards its last race in Belgium before the Summer break. The race in the spa offers different kinds of challenges to drivers and teams. The track has multiple high-speed corners which helped McLaren 1-2 at the top and Max Verstappen behind them in FP2. Verstappen explained the reason for being slower than the McLaren’s.

Max Verstappen explained that in the second practice session of the Belgian GP, Red Bull experimented with different car setups. He mentioned he has to face challenges in balancing the car with the first and third sectors requiring high top speed for the straights. While the second sector demanded good handling and speed through the corners. Verstappen highlighted, finding the right balance was difficult because improving performance in one sector would have a negative impact on others. Red Bull aimed to find a setup that performs well across all the parts of Spa.

We tried quite a few things. You have the first and third sectors where you want top speed and a very long second sector where you need the speed in the corners. So it's very difficult to find the right balance.
Max Verstappen said, as reported by RacingNews365
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The 26-year-old mentioned that they needed to review the data they had collected during the practice sessions. He felt that they had started the day positively in the first session, but the second session wasn’t as strong. Afterward, the team carefully analyzed the information to understand what had worked well and what hadn’t. This analysis was crucial for making the necessary adjustments to improve the car’s performance for the Saturday’s session and ultimately for the race.

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We now have to analyze the data. I think we started the day positively, but the second session was a bit less.
Max Verstappen added.

Max Verstappen claims Red Bull needs to optimize somethings before Sunday’s race.

Max Verstappen mentioned that due to an engine change, his car would start the race from a position further back on the grid. This meant he will not be at the front with the fastest cars but in the middle. Because of this, the team had to make some adjustments to their strategy and car setup. They needed to optimize everything, such as the timing of pit stops, the race plan and especially the car’s performance. This would ensure that they could still compete strongly and potentially move up the positions during the race.

We start a bit further back because of the engine change and therefore we need to optimise some things.
Max Verstappen stated.
Christian Horner and Max Verstappen
Christian Horner and Max Verstappen (Via: Imago)

The Dutchman stated that the team had some things they needed to review and check because of the changes made to the car. The changes might include adjustment to the engine and finding the right balance which they lacked the most. It is crucial for Red Bull to review how the car handles, how fast it can go, and how it reacts in different situations during the race. Analyzing data from practice sessions would help Red Bull to review what went wrong and what didn’t. This would ultimately help them in Qualifying in a better position on Saturday.

We have some things we need to look at, especially because we made some changes.
Max Verstappen added.

Certainly, Max Verstappen highlighted his experience from the free practice sessions held on Friday. Red Bull must review every detail to gain an edge, as starting from the back already puts them at a disadvantage. Fans hope Verstappen finishes the first half of the season strongly, as the last three races didn’t favor him.

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