Horner understands Verstappen's frustration: "Could have done a better job".

Christian Horner understands the frustration of Max Verstappen after the Red Bull Racing driver was unable to challenge for pole position due to crashes of Carlos Sainz and Yuki Tsunoda and the ensuing red flag. Horner, however, knows that the points will not be distributed until Sunday.

"Max knew there was still a better lap in it and it looked like he could get another tow from Alonso. We'll never know though," Horner lamented after to Sky Sports. "It's so exciting this year. Every pole has been taken with just a tenth of a difference this year. It had become very exciting. Max had a good track position."

At least there are chances to make up places, unlike two weeks ago in Monaco: "You can overtake on this circuit, we've seen that in the past. It's about controlling your tyres. We'll see how we respond to that challenge tomorrow," said the Red Bull team boss.

How good is Mercedes?

Horner is curious to see how Sunday will go. "It looks like Mercedes have changed the set-up quite a bit, so we don't really know what impact that will have on their long runs. We're hoping for a good start."