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.

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.

"I see it as a positive thing. He is giving feedback," Chadwick told Sky Sport.

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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