McLaren warned of Verstappen's unlocked pace as 'worrying' sign assessed
Photo: Race Pictures
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A filmmaker with a soft spot for Ronnie Peterson, Gilles Villeneuve, Mika Hakkinen and above all, Tazio Nuvolari and Ayrton Senna, is also a diehard Formula One fan since the age of 4 (mid-90's). An avid researcher of the past of Grand Prix Racing since before it was even named F1, and with a thirst for knowledge of the ins and outs of the actuality of the sport, as well as for the technical aspects that define it, is a member of GPblog since 2023, where he has put his love of racing to good use.
Max Verstappen placed P6 in FP1 in Qatar ahead of the Sprint qualifying.
"He is delivering what the team need and I would be worried if I were the other teams as he is feeling a lot more performance is available."- Jamie Chadwick
Photo: RacePictures.
Oscar Piastri led a McLaren 1-2 in the first and only practice session in Doha, distorting the outlook provided by the first half of the session where Verstappen seemed to thrive and the papaya drivers appeared to struggle.
The breaking point that reversed the positive Red Bull trend was aligned with Verstappen's complaints of a balance issue in his RB21 that triggered bouncing whenever the Dutch driver eades off the throttle.
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Assessing Verstappen's overall form, Williams ambassador and Sky Sports analyst, Jamie Chadwick thinks the reigning world champion's complaints are actually a positive sign, which McLaren should be wary of as they head into the first relevant session of the race weekend.
'Verstappen's complaints, a positive thing'
"I see it as a positive thing. He is giving feedback," Chadwick told Sky Sport.
"We hear snippets of team radio and it seems like he is moaning but a lot of the things he is complaining about can be quickly adjusted.
"He is delivering what the team need and I would be worried if I were the other teams as he is feeling a lot more performance is available."
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Fellow presenter Bernie Collins was of a similar opinion saying: "Red Bull have work to do, I think," the former F1 strategy engineer said.
"Verstappen often complains in P1 about shifts in the car and Red Bull are generally very good at reacting to that and getting the car back out in a better position,” she concluded.
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