Verstappen critical despite fastest time: 'We still need to work on that'

Max Verstappen finished Friday's sessions at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez as the fastest man, but it did not come naturally. The Red Bull Racing driver stressed that it will be particularly exciting again in qualifying, but expects to have good cards for Sunday's Mexican Grand Prix.

Asked by F1TV whether Friday went smoothly, Verstappen's response was clear: "No. We look competitive, so that's good but there are always a few things to improve but overall, I think was a positive start to the weekend."

Remarkably, the Dutchman did not expect Red Bull to perform so strongly right away. "Probably a little bit better than I expected, so that's always good. Track is very slippery like always, tyres are very difficult to manage as well in the long run, so there are still a few things I think we can work on."

Lando Norris finished right behind Verstappen in FP2 and only a tenth behind the Verstappen. The three-time world champion did not find that surprising. "They've been close already for a few races now, so for me there is no surprise there. I think tomorrow is going to be incredibly competitive over one lap one lap. The race pace is again a different story," he concluded.