Max second after Friday practice: 'We made progress today'

Published on 08 April 2022 by Stefan Meens

After P4 in the opening practice session of the Australian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen was second fastest in FP2. Charles Leclerc was quickest round the Albert Park Circuit, with Ferrari team mate Carlos Sainz completing the top three.

“In the first session and at the start of the second, the balance wasn’t quite right”, said Max after a day’s running. “We changed the car a little bit for my final run and it already felt better. We still lose a bit of time to the Ferraris but we’ll try to minimise the gap over the weekend. They’re definitely fast again.”

Max continued saying: “In the long run, everything looks stable and good, so I’m happy with that. We really made progress today. It was needed because the start was tricky. We’re on the right way and hopefully we can make some small improvements for tomorrow.”

Looking ahead to the remainder of the weekend, Max said: “We don’t know what tomorrow brings and Ferrari look fast. We have work to do, but we are there or thereabouts.”

After a two-year absence, Albert Park is back on the calendar and the circuit features some changes which Max enjoyed: “Yeah, it’s good, the grip is good and there are less bumps so you can attack the corners better. I enjoyed my laps here today.”

At the start of the session, most drivers head out on the medium Pirelli tyres. Max, who steers his RB18 onto the track eight minutes in, joins his colleagues on the yellow side-walled compound. He aborts his first flying lap after correcting some oversteer before setting the seventh fastest lap on his second attempt. “We still have the same issues like in first practice; I can’t turn the car”, explains Max to the team.

Twenty minutes in, Sainz is the first driver to switch to the soft Pirelli compound to start qualifying simulations. His teammate Leclerc follows suit and soon after the Ferraris top the leaderboards.

Meanwhile, Valtteri Bottas misses the apex to turn one and has to take to the gravel. The Alfa Romeo driver is able to continue without any issues. Soon after, Fernando Alonso surprises with the quickest lap of the session thus far, but order is quickly restored by both Ferrari drivers with Leclerc leading the way.

After issues in FP1, Aston Martin continue to be plagued by problems. With twenty minutes to go, Sebastian Vettel has parked his car trackside, curtailing his Friday’s running.

With twelve laps remaining, there is red flag, following bits of body work from Lance Stroll’s Aston Martin lying on the track. After a quick tidy from the marshals, the session is resumed. In the remainder, all drivers head out on the medium tyres, meaning there are no lap time improvements noted.

Contest GP Australia: win a by Max signed 1:4 Dutch GP 2021 scale model helmet!

Results second free practice Australia: