Verstappen remains realistic about opportunities, but car 'feels good'

Max Verstappen has just completed his first laps in a Formula 1 car on the Imola circuit and is quite satisfied with his speed afterwards. He was able to nestle neatly between the Mercedes drivers.

"It was a good start", Verstappen is quoted on his own website. “The car felt good, so that helps a lot. It is an enjoyable track to drive, very happy with that. I thought the track would be a bit narrow, but it is fine. We have to see what we have to do for qualifying, but no major problems.”

Mercedes seem a bit too strong

During free practice, Verstappen was one of the first drivers to drive a fast lap on the soft tyre. Hamilton got very close to his time on the medium at that stage and then went a little faster on the soft tyre. With this in mind, Verstappen is realistically looking forward to qualifying shortly.

"That is difficult. It is hard to beat Mercedes, but we are not too far behind, hopefully that will be the same in qualifying”, says Verstappen, who still has the prospect of second place in the championship if he beats Valtteri Bottas structurally.