Following the initial free practice sessions leading up to the Saudi Arabian GP, Red Bull’s top advisor Helmut Marko is cautiously optimistic. While Max Verstappen only clocked the ninth fastest time in the first session, he was only three-tenths behind Lando Norris‘s McLaren in FP2. The question is what Red Bull – which has won the last three editions of the Saudi GP – can pull off in the race.
“I think this was the best Friday in a long time for Red Bull,” Helmut Marko responded after the second free practice in Jeddah. “We tried various setups, and that works for the qualifying run. We are now much closer to McLaren.” Under the artificial lights, Max Verstappen recorded the third fastest time, behind Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Yuki Tsunoda was less fortunate; his second free practice ended with a crash in the final corner. An accident is still always lurking around the corner at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit.
‘Balance Issues Have Not Been Resolved’
“In the long run, the tyre wear and tyre temperature are unfortunately too high,” continued Marko. “So the challenge for tomorrow is that we need to find more reliability for the race, while at the same time maintaining the qualifying speed.” Based on the GP of Bahrain, the balance of the RB21 was the biggest problem. Max Verstappen repeatedly complained that he could not get the car into the right window. According to Marko, the pace in Jeddah does not mean that Red Bull has now resolved these problems.
“No, the car still does not have the right balance,” he stated. “But we have indeed taken a step forward. McLaren simply has a car that performs everywhere. So we definitely still need to catch up, but I think we came close with Verstappen’s last lap.” As for qualifying pace, Red Bull is satisfied, although Marko warns that it will be difficult to keep up with McLaren in the race. “We know what the car needs on Saturday, but for the race we really need to be able to control tyre wear better.”
