The Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix does not look particularly favorable for Max Verstappen. The defending World Champion has openly expressed his doubts regarding the pace of the upgraded version of RB20 and the dominance McLaren portrayed throughout Saturday.
EIGHT IN A ROW! 🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇
Max Verstappen equals Ayrton Senna’s all-time consecutive poles record #F1 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/TFZxmM6i2o
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 18, 2024
Verstappen secured his 8th consecutive pole position in Imola, tying with legendary Brazilian F1 driver Ayrton Senna. Despite his grand achievement, Verstappen feels uncomfortable heading into race day. He would have been satisfied or happy in other cases, but after having unexpectedly bad practice sessions, where none of the Red Bull drivers could end in the top 3, seems like a degrade for Verstappen particularly.
After having a flawed three free practice sessions, Verstappen returned to the Qualifying, leading all three rounds, showcasing his control, dominance, and potential on the track. Although McLaren had the upper hand and was more dominant compared to Red Bull, Verstappen bounced back quite decently.
“I have no clue about McLaren. They looked very strong yesterday in their long run. So, hopefully, we can do something similar,” Max Verstappen replied when he was asked about his preparations for the race on Sunday. He seems wearied by the pace and balance both the McLaren drivers, especially Oscar Piastri had in both the FP3 and Qualifying, where he finished first and second respectively.
A doubtful Max Verstappen does not have a good feeling about the pace
Verstappen in an interview after qualifying, said: ” Yesterday was terrible in the long run and short run. This morning, we wanted to do a long run, but then we only did three laps.”
The fact that Verstappen ended up securing pole position at Imola, was beyond his expectations, as he repeatedly complained about the upgraded car being off-balance with poor pace. “I honestly went into qualifying like, ‘Well, if we can get a top five, I would be happy’, because this weekend has been really difficult.”
He admits to being on the back foot the whole weekend, and if modifications aren’t made, then winning the race would be difficult despite starting from the pole. Verstappen seems underconfident but still believes that things might be different in the race.
What worries him more is the pace of McLaren, as once again both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri did an outstanding job in the FP3 and Qualifying ending in pole positions. Unfortunately, Piastri was given a three-place grid penalty for impeding Kevin Magnussen in the quality and started from P5 instead of P2.
BREAKING: Oscar Piastri receives a three-place grid penalty for impeding Kevin Magnussen during qualifying
He drops to P5 on the grid#F1 #ImolaGP pic.twitter.com/3Wz62ipsIO
— Formula 1 (@F1) May 18, 2024
Max explained that the “RB20 came alive in Q3,” and the car produced better results leading to the pole. Verstappen’s form has turned around, which gives him hope going into the race, but it hasn’t given him a sense of preparation. The leader of the championship explained that the RB20 “didn’t feel good” during what ended up being a watered-down long run earlier in the day, and McLaren is also unknown after nearly denying him the pole.
Will it be another smooth and easy win for Max Verstappen at the Imola Grand Prix?
“We managed to be on top of qualifying, but that’s qualifying. The race can be, again, a bit different. And normally, I would like to be a little bit better prepared with a bit more information going into the race. So, I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens in the race,” Max Verstappen remarked.
A few weeks prior, it would have come as little surprise to learn that Max Verstappen would start first in the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in Imola. But what appeared ordinary a month ago was far from it on Saturday. Verstappen’s satisfaction at retaining pole despite a difficult start to the weekend highlighted how hard he had worked for this one.
The question now is how hard Norris and Piastri can push the world champion, and whether Ferrari will be a greater threat in racing trim than they were on Sunday. In any case, there are several hints that this could be the most competitive and fascinating Sunday of the season thus far.
And as it seems, the chances of Max Verstappen not having a smooth and easy win are most likely to happen on Sunday. The upgraded RB20 is flawed to such an extent that despite being driven by the fastest driver on the grid, that is Max Verstappen himself, the car seems to not respond symbiotically. The unnecessary bounces and poor balance have made it difficult for Verstappen to be at par with the Ferraris and McLarens.
Verstappen mentioned that there is a lot of work to be done to maintain an advantage on track after having tough practice sessions and qualifying. Now, we just have to wait and watch what an underprepared Max Verstappen can do at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix on Sunday, May 19.