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Verstappen says small Honda upgrades will make Red Bull look very different

Verstappen says "small Honda upgrades" will make Red Bull look very different

14-06-2019 10:00
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Bobby Vincent

Red Bull Racing star Max Verstappen believes if Honda could provide his team with a "bit more power and a bit more balance", the situation at the top of the grid could look completely different in the upcoming races.

Verstappen has enjoyed a solid start to the season - scoring two podiums in seven races - ever since Honda have been responsible for providing Red Bull with its power unit.

It wasn't so good for Red Bull in Canada, though, with Verstappen missing out on Q3 and having to start in P10, after Kevin Magnussen was forced to start the race in the pit-lane. Verstappen did recover to finish in fifth.

"Of course, we all know that we need to do better but I believe in the project we are in together with Honda," Verstappen said to AD. "So, we are just working hard now to of course step up the performance and we'll see in the upcoming races where we will be.

"If you can get a bit more power, a bit more balance in the car, then suddenly it looks a lot different."

Verstappen was perhaps a tad unfortunate in Monaco a few weeks ago, following a pit-lane collision with Valtteri Bottas, with the stewards penalising the Dutchman with a five-second penalty. Verstappen finished fourth, despite finishing the race in second.

"In Monaco, we were the second best team," he continued. "I knew (Montreal) was not going to be great. Last year, we were quite competitive but I think back then our car was quite a lot better than the Mercedes and Ferrari and now I wouldn't say we are superior to them."