Max Verstappen finished third and eighth respectively in the first and second free practice. The Mercedes seems very strong, but the Dutchman states that the RB16B feels reasonable. After FP2, Verstappen also tells British television about what happened between him and Lewis Hamilton in the second practice session of the day.
"I couldn't set a fast lap only in FP2 on the softs," Verstappen told Sky Sports in an initial reaction to his Friday in Texas. "Overall it's not easy, tracks quite bumpy. To find the right compromise hasn't been easy so far."
Verstappen not dissatisfied
"We have some positive things we can look at and we will continue to work on that overnight. It didn't feel bad on the short runs, it was just a mess from the traffic," said the current leader in the World Championship. On the incident with Hamilton where he raised his middle finger, he says: "We were both lining up for our lap, so I don't understand what happened there."