Red Bull encouraged by Verstappen's FP1 performance in Miami

Verstappen’s quickest lap time was a 1:29.6. The Dutchman finished around three tenths behind Leclerc on both of his soft-tyre runs during the final minutes, but ahead of everyone else.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Mekies was happy with Red Bull's new package. The Frenchman explained: "Honestly, we only looked at ourselves during that session. It was so important after the big break and with all the big changes on the car to try to assess us against us, really that was the main purpose.

Therefore, the Red Bull team boss is optimistic. "The gap to competition we'll look at a bit later, but certainly on Max's side there is a sign that we have something he can push a bit more with."

The so-called 'Macarena' wing, originally named by Frederic Vasseur for Ferrari’s interpretation of a rear wing that flips around, was also seen on the RB22 today. Mekies added that Red Bull already had their version in mind before seeing Ferrari’s concept.

He concluded: "We had bigger issues to solve before to be able to bring that rear wing to the track. So, it’s a good indication of how hard everyone is pushing."