While Ferrari looked “very competitive” on Day 2 in Bahrain, that was on a day where “Max Verstappen wasn’t driving”.

That is the point made by Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko, who also offered an explanation for the RB21 issue which cost Liam Lawson time at the wheel on his final outing before that big debut in Australia.

Red Bull RB21 engine cooler issue hampers Liam Lawson

Additional reporting by Thomas Maher

It was not the typical Bahrain weather which greeted the drivers on Day 2 of testing, with chilly temperatures and rain in the air threatening to influence the track action.

The rain would indeed fall, interrupting the morning running for all teams not named Aston Martin or Haas, who had requested wet-weather Pirelli tyres for their range.

“We were a little bit handicapped with the rain, and we couldn’t do all our programmes,” Marko told the media in Bahrain after Day 2.

“But it was just a normal testing day, and we went through several programmes.”

However, the rain was not the only disruptor that Red Bull came across, as Lawson was restricted to just 28 laps in the morning session due to an engine issue on the RB21, Marko confirming that “one of the coolers had leaked”.

Asked how much track time that cost Lawson, Marko added: “I would say at least 40 minutes, something like that.

“It would have been better without these problems [the rain and engine issue] [laughs], but we did what we could do, and basically we are in line.”

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Lawson would ultimately end the day with 91 laps completed, a solid recovery mission, following a first day of track action with the RB21 which had led to positive reviews from the Red Bull camp.

And asked if that positive feeling in the team remains after Day 2, Marko replied: “Oh, he [Lawson] was on a different programme. So I think tomorrow, it’s important.”

Pressed to confirm that Day 1’s conclusions that the car felt good and was working well remain valid after Day 2, Marko confirmed: “Yes.”

Carlos Sainz would ultimately set the day’s highlight time of a 1:29.348 in the Williams FW47, displacing Lewis Hamilton who had topped the morning session for Ferrari. Hamilton’s team-mate Charles Leclerc would ensure both Ferraris ended Day 2 in the top three.

Marko therefore was asked for his assessment of Ferrari’s pace, which led to him making a point about Verstappen’s absence from the RB21 on Day 2.

“They looked yes, very competitive today,” said Marko on Ferrari, “but Max wasn’t driving, for example.

“And as I said, we had this problem with the cooler. We lost a lot of time.”

Verstappen will drive the Red Bull RB21 for the full third and final day of testing in Bahrain.

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