Verstappen can hope in Qatar: 'Kind of margins which can be overcome'

Max Verstappen started the Qatar Grand Prix well. The Dutchman took first and third place in the first two free practice sessions, while his rival Lewis Hamilton finished in fourth place twice. Although Mercedes seem to be faster, despite the result, Lawrence Barretto sees that the difference is minimal.

The journalist writes on the official website of Formula 1 that the Austrian racing team had a tough time on Friday. "Of the two title-contending teams, it’s Red Bull who appear to have more to do on Friday evening," Barretto argues. "Both Verstappen and Sergio Perez saying that while the car felt decent on the medium, they have a lot of work to do on the soft."

Despite this, he believes Red Bull have a good chance of victory this weekend. "They are just 0.07s behind Mercedes in qualifying trim (below) and a fraction more – 0.1s – adrift in race pace – but they have healthy advantage over the rest of the field. Those are certainly the kind of margins which can be overcome over Friday night."

Perez once again fared a lot worse than Verstappen. The Mexican didn't finish higher than eighth in both sessions, which means he and his team still have a lot of work to do this weekend.