Max Verstappen struggled throughout qualifying to secure the seventh grid slot for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
Opening up on the challenges that he faced so far this weekend, the four-time champion explained that he had issues with brake feel and grip.
“All weekend it has been difficult, just struggling on brake feel and stopping power basically. Besides that just also just very difficult grip,” he explained to the media.
“Now, I feel that maybe the tyre grip that we are getting out of the car and that’s why also set-up wise we have thrown the car around a lot and nothing really seems to give you a clear direction. So I guess that also shows we are struggling also with other things.
“I have no idea how they [the extra set of hard tyres he has saved for the race] will perform. I think it will be quite high deg but also on the hard tyre you have quite low mechanical grip so naturally you will slide a bit more and I have no idea how that will work out. But at least it’s an option to have and then we’ll see what happens with it.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
Commenting on how difficult it might be to start from seventh on the grid tomorrow, he added:
“I don’t know. I just try to do my best. It’s been a difficult weekend for us. Tomorrow I’ll try to get as many points as I can – I mean I do that every single weekend, so it’s not like it’s any difference tomorrow – but I have no idea where we will be in terms of race pace. We’ll be in the middle of the pack so hopefully a bit of excitement.”
Verstappen’s new team-mate, Yuki Tsunoda, progressed through to Q3 for the first time with the Milton Keynes outfit. McLaren’s Oscar Piastri secured pole position and will be joined on the front row by Mercedes driver George Russell.
