Verstappen Struggles with “Unpredictable” Red Bull in Baku Qualifying: Trails Behind Perez for First Time in 2024

Max Verstappen expresses unease with Red Bull's unpredictability in Baku

Max Verstappen shares his thoughts on yet another challenging F1 qualifying round at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen characterized his Red Bull F1 vehicle as "remarkably erratic," after being surpassed in qualifying by his Red Bull colleague Sergio Perez for the inaugural occasion in 2024.

Verstappen managed to secure the sixth spot in the qualifying round for Red Bull at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, finishing two positions lower than his teammate.

The Dutch driver expressed dissatisfaction with the way his RB20 was performing during the qualifying sessions.

A positive update for Verstappen is that his chief competitor for the championship, Lando Norris, was eliminated in Q1.

Speaking from the Azerbaijan event, where Crash.net has reporters on the ground, Verstappen commented: “Right from the start of Q1, on my initial lap, it was apparent the car had regressed due to some adjustments we made. It turned exceedingly erratic and challenging to handle, all because of the modifications we implemented.

"It's somewhat disheartening because you consistently aim to enhance and refine everything. Regrettably, it seems we pushed it too far this time. It's regrettable that this occurred right before the qualifying round."

"In my initial attempt during the third qualifying round, I made a mistake in the final turn, which could have had me competing for second or third position. There was still an opportunity to better my time with another run. Unfortunately, I lacked a good connection with the vehicle throughout. It was challenging to handle, and without feeling at ease in it, I was unable to aggressively take on the turns, leaving me at a disadvantage."

Verstappen toned down his critique of his vehicle compared to his previous comments at Monza, referring to it as a "monster".

In response to whether the RB20 remains a "beast," he clarified, "Absolutely not. Although we enhanced the vehicle, our goal to refine it and improve several aspects didn't pan out as expected, leading to unintended results."

"I believe the issue with balance inconsistency has gotten better. Of course, this is largely due to the track."

"We're currently making adjustments to improve it going forward. Our goal is to better integrate the balance disconnect."

Verstappen is ahead of Norris by a margin of 62 points in the championship standings for drivers, with eight races left to go.

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