Verstappen looking forward to Imola: "I'm ready for the battle"

Expectations are high for Red Bull Racing in Imola. Max Verstappen took pole in Bahrain, and battled Lewis Hamilton to the last second during the race, while Sergio Perez finished fifth after stalling even before the race had started. 

Everything must be perfect

In an official press release from Red Bull Racing, Verstappen revealed that Bahrain was certainly not a bad start to the season, but there are no guarantees heading into Imola. "Bahrain was a positive weekend in terms of performance. We started the season well and hopefully we can keep that up. It won't be easy though and everything has to work perfectly to beat the competition."

Areas for improvement

The fact that Red Bull Racing, after being fastest in Bahrain on the Friday and Saturday, still failed to take victory probably only makes the Dutchman even more eager for a good weekend in Imola. "Even if we had won the race in Bahrain, there are always areas for improvement. Especially when you are up against a team that has already won seven world championships. So that's where we will continue in Imola."

Hopefully fate will be more in Verstappen's favour on Italian soil than last season. Last season the ten times champion crashed out in all races in Italy. So it looks like things can only get better for Max and Red Bull Racing in that respect. Max: "I'm ready for battle and it's still a long season."