Verstappen not quite satisfied yet after difficult day: 'Need to look at that'

For Max Verstappen, Friday in Australia is over. The Dutchman topped the timesheet at the first free practice session and came to P3 in VT2 in the rained-out session. Balance in particular is a concern for the Red Bull driver, as the speed is there.

After the first two free practice sessions at Albert Park, Verstappen has little reason to complain. Indeed, in the first free practice, the two-time world champion was more than four-tenths faster than the competition, in the second free practice there was no serious race for the fastest time due to the rain. Still, the balance problems left Verstappen with mixed feelings.

Verstappen maintains confidence

"There is little grip and the asphalt is slippery here. It is very difficult to make the tyres work," said the Dutchman, according to Verstappen.com after the end of the second free practice session. "We will look at the data tonight to see what we need to do tomorrow to make the right choice." Helmut Marko, for instance, previously hinted at a setup change for the Dutchman, as Sergio Perez's seems to be clearly working better.

Still, Verstappen is positive overall. After all, the car is fast. "The car did feel good. We still need to do some studying tonight, but that will be fine. Tomorrow it will probably be dry, so we will just focus on that," concluded the two-time world champion.