Verstappen in trouble: 'We can't explain what's wrong'

Free practice one did not go according to plan for Red Bull, says Helmut Marko. Despite first and third-place finishes for Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen, there are plenty of headaches for the Austrians, mainly on Verstappen's side.

The Dutchman could not match his teammate's times during the first practice session. Helmut Marko knows why. "There is something wrong with Verstappen's car. We cannot explain what is going on. On both tyres we have these problems. He should actually have the same car as during the winter tests and as Perez, but that is not the case," the Red Bull advisor told Motorsport-magazin.com.

Verstappen's RB19 has unexplained problems

Speaking to Sky, the 79-year-old Marko elaborates on the shortcoming. "The car is driving differently and we don't know why. We need to find out what is wrong and why the car is simply not responding, which was the case during testing. It mainly plays up in the slow corners." Still, Marko is confident that the problem is short-lived. "I'm sure we can solve it towards the second free practice."