Max Verstappen says Crimson Bull might want to discover extra tempo on Saturday to remain forward of Ferrari and Aston Martin in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix.
The championship chief set the tempo in Friday’s second apply session. Nonetheless, he was simply six-hundredths of a second faster than Charles Leclerc and a tenth forward of Leclerc’s Ferrari workforce mate, Carlos Sainz Jnr.
After Verstappen solely posted the sixth-quickest time within the opening apply session, he admitted he had struggled together with his automobile across the bumpy avenue circuit at first.
“FP1 was fairly difficult,” he stated. “I used to be probably not pleased with the trip of the automobile on the kerbs and the bumps.
“I believe FP2 was already so much higher, the automobile was much more aggressive. However in comparison with Ferrari particularly I believe we’re nonetheless a bit missing on the final trip of the automobile, so the way it handles the kerbs, the bumps, the drops in camber.
“In order that’s nonetheless one thing we have to work on for tomorrow as a result of you’ll be able to see they’re very, very shut and realizing that when you go all to the restrict in qualifying, we want a bit extra to simply keep forward of them.”
With Fernando Alonso simply two tenths of a second behind Verstappen in fourth place and having been faster than each Crimson Bulls within the earlier session, Verstappen recognises the potential extra risk from the Aston Martin driver.
“They’re shut as nicely,” Verstappen stated. “So we positively must construct slightly bit extra of a buffer if we need to be forward of them tomorrow.”
Verstappen’s Crimson Bull workforce mate Sergio Perez was half a second slower than him in seventh place on the finish of second apply. Perez stated he must undergo the information together with his workforce to find out how he could make up that deficit on Saturday.
“I believe I simply want to sit down down with the boys and undergo that and attempt to decide up the perfect bits on the market,” stated Perez, “as a result of each millisecond right here goes to make a distinction.”
Requested if there was one thing elementary together with his automobile’s arrange which will clarify the margin, Perez stated it was solely “little issues” holding him again. “There’s nothing standing out in the intervening time,” he stated.
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