Verstappen: “Still work on long stints”

Author of the best time in Free Practice 1 Friday morning in Austin, Max Verstappen confirms its good form on the Circuit of the Americas by setting the 3rd fastest time in the afternoon session. 

If it points to more than three tenths of the reference established by Lewis Hamilton, the Dutchman estimates that the driver's time Mercedes is not representative because it benefited from a good aspiration on the opposite straight line of the Texan route. 

« It was a positive day overall, commented Verstappen as he got out of the car. Our pace over one lap is not bad at all. I think the gap to Lewis is smaller than the timesheet shows. On the other hand, there is still work to be done on the long relays where our pace was not at the level of the best ». 

One of the main topics of discussion this Friday was the particularly bumpy nature of the American circuit. For the pilot Red Bull, the situation seems to get worse from year to year.

« The route becomes more and more bumpy over the seasons, commented Verstappen. We reach a stage where we wonder whether we should do something. Fortunately, most of the bumps are not in the braking zones but the feeling behind the wheel is quite strange. ». 

The Batavian is preparing to celebrate his 100th Grand Prix start this Sunday in Texas.