Max Verstappen wrapped up his opening day at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix sounding upbeat about Red Bull’s progress – but very clear about one thing: right now, Lando Norris and McLaren have the edge.
The Dutchman finished second in both Friday sessions at Yas Marina, each time behind the championship leader, and while the gap wasn’t monumental, Verstappen wasn’t pretending it didn’t matter.
With a 12-point deficit to overturn in the title decider, he knows the margin for compromise is razor thin.
After climbing from the RB21 at the end of FP2, Verstappen struck a balanced note – pleased with the car, yet conscious of the speed he’s missing.
“[The car was] Pretty okay, I mean I was fairly happy with the car, we just need to be probably a little bit faster,” he said.
His assessment was blunt but measured: “I think, yeah, still not quick enough, but I think overall we’ve been in a, for us, I think in a decent window around here.”
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Verstappen had shared his frustrations during FP1 over the car’s behaviour, hinting at vibrations and inconsistencies. Asked whether the ride felt any better, he didn’t sugarcoat it.
“That’s a constant fight, yeah, that’s nothing new.”
Overnight Hopes – But No Guarantees
With McLaren looking ominously strong – Norris topping both sessions and Oscar Piastri’s 11th-place FP2 a likely outlier rather than a trend – Verstappen was asked whether Red Bull could realistically find enough performance overnight to challenge.
His answer: cautious optimism, wrapped in realism.
“Seems like it’s a decent gap that we need to close, but from our side we’ll just try to put the best car forward, and yeah, let’s see how much we can find overnight,” he said.
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And the priority? Everything, basically.
The three-time champion summed up his checklist succinctly: the “single lap and long run needs to be better” to give him any shot at truly taking the fight to the McLarens.
The championship may still pivot over the next 48 hours, but after Friday’s running, one thing is clear: Verstappen knows he needs more pace – and he isn’t afraid to say it.
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