Red Bull was close behind Lando Norris in Abu Dhabi on Friday, but is still struggling a little with the car – Helmut Marko: We’ve had worse Fridays
If Red Bull wants to win the Drivers’ Championship title with Max Verstappen, the team will probably have to find something else for the rest of the weekend. World championship rival Lando Norris dominated Friday’s action in Abu Dhabi with his two fastest times in practice. However, Red Bull was close behind in second place in both sessions.
Although “close” applies more to the first practice session than the second. There, the Dutchman was 0.363 seconds behind the McLaren driver. “The changes we made didn’t have the effect we expected,” said Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko, commenting on the slight drop in pace in the second practice session.
The team lost out to McLaren, especially in the twisty third sector. The problem with the RB21: “The car has a clear tendency to understeer,” said Marko. “Something Max doesn’t like at all.”
Verstappen himself once again complained about the balance of his car during practice and spoke of a “constant battle” behind the wheel. “But that’s nothing new,” he commented.
Marko: There have been worse Fridays
Nevertheless, he said he was generally quite satisfied with the car. “We probably just need to get a little bit faster. I don’t think we’re fast enough yet, but overall we were in a pretty decent window for us here,” said the Dutchman.
According to Marko, there is also higher tire degradation compared to McLaren, which starts at the front and then also affects the rear axle. When asked if the gap is worrying, he replies: “I wouldn’t say it’s worrying, but it’s not a particularly comfortable situation.”
And yet the Bulls are not dissatisfied with the practice session. “We’ve had worse Fridays,” Marko knows. “And we have another session to go, and hopefully we’ll be heading in the right direction.”
What’s more, Red Bull has proven this season that it can make a significant leap overnight. That will be necessary if they want to knock Lando Norris off the top spot. The Brit must not finish on the podium this weekend, otherwise he will become world champion.
“Can’t hope for mistakes three times”
Teammate Oscar Piastri also still has a chance at the title, but he didn’t fare so well on Friday, finishing eleventh. “We would prefer it to be the other way around,” Marko admits. “But that’s just not the case.”
And the Austrian didn’t see much from the competition around Ferrari and Mercedes, which Red Bull needs between itself and Norris, on Friday either: “I don’t see any of them being fast enough,” he admits. The same applies to Yuki Tsunoda in the second Red Bull, who is unlikely to be of much help in 17th place.
Red Bull therefore has only one option: to focus on itself and then hope that McLaren slips up, as it did in Las Vegas and Qatar. “But we can’t hope for mistakes three times,” says Marko. “We have to fight on our own strength.”
“We have to make sure we get the car right. If we’re not first in qualifying, it’s not such a big deal. You can overtake here. But the important thing is the performance in the race. And that doesn’t look ideal at the moment.”
But as we know Red Bull, that doesn’t necessarily mean anything for the rest of the weekend.