Herbert: "It’s a type of track I think Red Bull could bring up a nice surprise"

“Max you can never rule out, that is for sure," Herbert said in a brief preview for Sky Sports. The analyst secretly hopes that Verstappen can make things difficult for Mercedes in Russia. "The car is always a good race car. Normally he is getting better when it comes down to qualifying as well."

The last six Grands Prix at Sochi were all won by Mercedes. Four times it was Lewis Hamilton who reached the finish line first on Sunday and Valtteri Bottas and Nico Rosberg both won once. However, according to Herbert the RB16 would fit reasonably well with the characteristics of the track in Russia. "It’s a type of track I think the Red Bull could bring up a nice surprise."

There is always talk about Verstappen as a contender, but teammate Alexander Albon shouldn't be forgotten either. "Off the back of that third position, obviously last time in Mugello, that maybe is a sort of extra motivation he will suddenly play as well," concludes the 56-year old Briton.