Red Bull Pre-Season Testing: What we learned from Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez’s RB18 run in Bahrain
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Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez
The second of pre-season testing has come to an end for Red Bull after three days of rigorous driving by its drivers, the current world champion Max Verstappen and the fans minister of defense Sergio Perez. The team seems to have had successful three days, with no major issue arising in Bahrain for the team.
The duo headed into the second round of three-day pre-season testing in Bahrain hoping for replicating their success in Barcelona, and building for the success in Bahrain GP, a week later. And so they did. Over three days they displayed the car’s pace and durability and presented their contention for the championship in 2022.
Max Verstappen Lap timings and laps completed
The defending champion Max Verstappen had average testing in Barcelona and looked forward to making a statement while coming to Bahrain. The driver was under immense pressure from Mercedes and Ferrari and successfully faced the challenge with all his might. The driver completed a total of 139 laps in testing on the second and the third day.
| Day | Laps completed | Rank | Best Time |
| 1 | – | – | – |
| 2 | 86 | 03 | 1:34.011 |
| 3 | 53 | 01 | 1:31.720 |
Sergio Perez Lap Timings and Laps completed
Sergio Perez will be heading into his second season with red Bull, and after a good season with the team, he is expected to contribute more to the constructors’ title. In Bahrain, he drove 181 laps, one of the highest in the second round.
| Day | Laps completed | Rank | Best Time |
| 1 | 138 | 11 | 1:35.977 |
| 2 | – | – | – |
| 3 | 43 | 07 | 1:33.105s |
Struggles faced by Red Bull
One of the struggles of the testing during the visit to Bahrain was Sergio Perez’s car hitting the gravel on day 1, which also brought an early end to the second session of the day. But the team had a night to repair the car and returned stronger on the second day.
The team also struggled a fair bit to top the timesheets in Bahrain, only managing to do so once in three days and six days in total testing. However, Red Bull claims the team challenged for the top spot without even pulling all their guns out, and are confidently heading into the first racing weekend of the season.
Key positives for Red Bull to take away
The team presented an upgrade on the third day of the testing, revealing their new sidepods, dramatic but not quite as dramatic as Mercedes’ sidepod reveal on day 1 in Bahrain. Verstappen improved his times on day 3 many times and finally managed to put the team on first in pre-season timesheets. The team has found its pace on the second and the third day, managing to stay on top of the grid.
The car’s pace looks promising and is suiting the drivers’ driving style pretty well. The team also seems to have put the right finger on porpoising and look ready with a pretty good version before the GP, due to be held next week on the same track.
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Manan Goel
(400 Articles Published)