Good news for Verstappen: Red Bull can seemingly extract more from the RB22

Formula 1 returns to the Sepang International Circuit for the first time since 2017 after the Bahrain Grand Prix was rescheduled. Max Verstappen set the pace in FP1, and the Dutchman set the fourth-quickest time later in FP2.

According to Wache, the Milton Keynes-based outfit had a positive first day on track in Malaysia. He began: "It’s been a challenging day here at Sepang, but also a very interesting one. It has been quite demanding for the drivers and the car because of the heat, but I think we have made a good start to the weekend."

Wache sees that they could extract more from the updates first brought to the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. He continued: "The track surface was extremely dusty, and the grip evolved a lot throughout the day, but we made a good start in the opening session, evaluating the package we brought to Baku and focusing on different types of corners, particularly in the low speed. Overall, it seems to be working better than what we brought last weekend

Hadjar did experience some issues on Friday, but Wache believes it is something they will be able to sort out. "Isack had a few issues in the session with balance, but we will do our best to iron those out overnight. After that, in terms of relative performance, it is very difficult to judge, but so far, we are happy with where we are," the Frenchman concluded.

After the session, the four-time world champion said: "Pretty decent I think. We started off well, it's just very high deg and hot, and a lot of things to look at with the tyres, but it's been alright. We tried a few things, but then also the track is hotter, different tires. In FP1 you're on softs, and then in FP2 I was on mediums. So, a bit hard to say if we actually went forward, but we'll look over it during the night."