Verstappen the favourite at Imola: 'Should be a good circuit for Red Bull Racing'

Red Bull Racing may not have won the Bahrain Grand Prix, but the speed of the RB16B was satisfactory. Max Verstappen was the fastest man on the track all weekend and is also the favourite in Imola according to the 2001 San Marino Grand Prix winner Ralf Schumacher.

Verstappen the favourite

Red Bull Racing has taken a while to build a car that will truly take on Mercedes in 2021. Verstappen was fastest in qualifying and looked set to be the fastest in the race, but a strategic move by Mercedes meant he had to let Hamilton go ahead of him.

Imola will be Verstappen's next chance to take a win in 2021, and Schumacher thinks Verstappen has a good chance. ''Imola should be a good circuit for Red Bull. Verstappen was very strong here last year, only he had a technical problem. Otherwise, we would have seen him at the front,'' Schumacher told Sky Germany.

Excitement in Imola

The Dutchman did indeed have a strong weekend at Imola last year, but a sudden tyre blowout put an end to his race. The Red Bull driver was in second place at the time, having passed Valtteri Bottas. Lewis Hamilton took advantage of pitting under the Virtual Safety Car. 

''I see Red Bull narrowly out in front again in Imola, but Mercedes haven't been sleeping either. Bottas was also very strong in the race, so it will clearly be an interesting battle between the two drivers from Red Bull Racing and Mercedes'', concludes the former Formula One driver.