Red Bull: Verstappen back in action in second free practice

Red Bull Racing worked on Max Verstappen's gearbox before the start of the first free practice session for the Dutch Grand Prix. A locking piece of the main shaft had to be replaced, but still the 24-year old driver fell silent on the Zandvoort circuit. Helmut Marko says there is no connection between the two.

Verstappen back in FP2

Speaking to Austrian television station ORF, Marko stated that the defect has 'nothing to do' with the repair work carried out earlier on Friday."Hopefully it is only the gearbox. We are sure we will have the car ready in time for the second practice session. Then we can also say exactly what the problem was."

Verstappen only drove seven laps, but did make a reasonable impression in the ten minutes he drove. In the end he finished nineteenth, but that doesn't say much of course. The seventh place Sergio Perez finished in FP1 doesn't say much either, Marko said. Perez's times in the first two free practice sessions are never that representative for the rest of the weekend, according to the Red Bull advisor.

"Sergio is usually a second behind Max on Friday. The data is not very telling then. But what Max showed in the first laps makes us optimistic that we can be there [at the front of the Mercedes]," said Marko, who expects an exciting battle the rest of the weekend.