Max expects chaotic qualifying at Monza: 'A lot will depend on slipstreaming'
Published on 04 September 2020 by Stefan Meens
After Friday practice, Max Verstappen always chats to Ziggo Sport’s Olav Mol to look at the Grand Prix weekend ahead.
“It just wasn’t a good day for us”, said Max after finishing fifth in both Friday practice sessions. “We didn’t have the balance and grip, so we have to work on that. Last year, we did go well here in Monza. We were pretty competitive, but now we lack grip; at the front, the rear, on four wheels.”
“Monza is not my favourite circuit. It has a lot of straights and slow chicanes, whereas I prefer fast corners with downforce on the car”.
Different tracks have different rhythms. What determines a nice track? Max: “It usually depends on the balance of the car. But I’ll find my rhythm here, it’s just not that nice to drive here.”
In the first practice session, Max had a shunt on the exit of Ascari. “I had some damage to floor, which took a bit of time to repair. But we were able to work through our intended programme.”
Monza’s high-speed nature makes the circuit ideally suited for slipstreaming and thus team mates helping each other. “You’ll see teams trying in qualifying, but it also depends how you can do your outlap. I expect a lot of chaos in qualifying.”
Previewing qualifying, Max concludes: “A lot will depend on the slipstream and of course the engine settings people are fine-tuning. We have work to do, but I’ll put my foot down!”
