Max Verstappen doesn’t believe Red Bull should be in the front row, so he was pleased to finish second in the sprint at China’s Grand Prix despite missing out on Lewis Hamilton in just 0.018s.
Hamilton won the sprint pole at the start of Ferrari’s second race weekend. Berstappen’s final lap saw the defending champion not enough to beat his previous rival. Both drivers are surprised to see McLaren ahead of the lap times prior to Friday, and Verstappen says the starting position is far beyond his expectations ahead of the session.
“I’m very happy,” Verstappen said. “I think I was quite apart in the first practice so I’m really happy to be honest in the front row. The rap was really good. If you go from inside to soft, it’s always very difficult to nail the rap without references.
Verstappen said his Red Bull has not faced any serious handling issues, but the outcome is a boost as it appears to limit the damage to championship rankings at this early stage, as it lacks overall performance compared to things like McLaren.
“I don’t think the balance is much off so there’s nothing dramatic. I’m too late to say that. But this is good for us. It also motivates a little bit more for those of us who keep nailing the rap. “We’re struggling a little bit more for the pace and we need to do that.”
With Oscar Piastri on third and Rand Norris in sixth, Verstappen expects the McLaren pair to pose a serious threat in the sprint, but he hopes the performance difference is small enough and he can fight for the victory.
“I think they looked very fast until that last run, so I think it’s very difficult to keep them behind,” he admitted. “But hopefully it’s fun. Hopefully, we’ll all be there… I’m not saying we’re close, but at least we can compete a little, that’s great for me.”