Saturday in Imola | Verstappen reclaims favourite role for Red Bull

After a difficult weekend in Australia, Max Verstappen showed during the sprint race in Imola why he still shares the favorites role with Charles Leclerc. The Red Bull Racing driver drove a patient race and seized his opportunity as soon as it presented itself. What else happened on Saturday in Imola?

The day began with the second and final free practice session for the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. Since the cars were under Parc Fermé rules since qualifying, nothing more could be changed on the setups, making VT2 not much more than a practice session for the races later in the weekend.

The drivers therefore mainly worked off race simulations with heavier cars instead of concentrating on fast lap times. For Valtteri Bottas and Daniel Ricciardo there was no action at all: both suffered from technical problems and were forced to watch from the sidelines.

Mercedes surprised in VT2

For the first time this weekend the drivers drove on dry asphalt, in conditions that would prove representative for the sprint race. What particularly stood out was the strong form of Mercedes, who surprisingly ended the practice session as the fastest with George Russell. Lewis Hamilton was also in good shape with a fourth time.

Meanwhile, Ferrari and Red Bull Racing took it fairly easy, so it remained to be seen to what extent the times in VT2 were representative. A few hours later, during the sprint race, it would turn out that the fun was a one-off for Mercedes.

Verstappen has dramatic start

The sprint race started with rivals Verstappen and Leclerc on the first row of the grid. Not for the first time the Dutchman had a dramatic start, which Leclerc immediately took advantage of by taking over first place. Verstappen managed to avoid worse by keeping Lando Norris behind him, who came close to taking second place.

Not long after, the first safety car of the weekend was a fact: Guanyu Zhou and Pierre Gasly collided, with the Alfa Romeo driver ending up in the wall. Gasly came off with a puncture and was able to continue his race after a pit stop.

Leclerc takes distance at restart

At the restart - where Verstappen is no longer allowed to position his RB18 next to Leclerc after an FIA rule change - Leclerc immediately grabbed a lead. Verstappen was able to keep up well with his rival's pace, but for a long time he just failed to get within DRS distance.

In the closing stages of the race, this changed. Verstappen heard on the radio that Leclerc was suffering from graining, after which the Dutchman almost immediately started to close the gap. In the last few laps he managed to get within DRS distance and on the penultimate lap took the lead back from the Ferrari driver.

Verstappen takes back lead

The pace of Verstappen's performance was evident in the final lap and a half, in which he gained almost three seconds on his rival. So the win on Saturday - and with it the pole position on Sunday - was for Verstappen, but there was more reason to be happy for Red Bull Racing.

Sergio Perez made it from seventh on the grid to third in the short race, joining his teammate on the podium. It also means a very strong starting position for Red Bull in Sunday's race.