Max Verstappen identifies key Red Bull RB20 change after Austrian GP sprint pole

Max Verstappen, Red Bull

Max Verstappen has identified a key difference with his Red Bull RB20 after setting pole position for the Austrian Grand Prix sprint race, revealing the car was “in a good window” from the start of the Friday in Spielberg.

Having produced the most dominant season in F1 history last season, setting a new record with 19 victories from a possible 22 races as he eased to a third consecutive World Championship, Verstappen had been expected to crush the opposition once again in F1 2024.

Max Verstappen: Red Bull RB20 ‘in a good window’ in Austria

Yet despite starting his latest title defence by winning four of the opening five races – including three one-two finishes for Red Bull in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Japan – the team have appeared increasingly vulnerable over recent weeks.

Having struggled over bumps and kerbs in Emilia Romagna, Monaco and Canada, Red Bull had been tipped to be back at their best at last weekend’s Spanish Grand Prix.

Verstappen collected his seventh victory of the season in Barcelona – extending his lead in the World Championship to 69 points – yet declared that Red Bull’s dominance has “completely gone” after missing out on pole position to McLaren driver Lando Norris.

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The Dutchman went on to express his frustration that it “took a bit of finetuning again to get the car quick”, following the pattern of his recent struggles.

Verstappen’s problems appeared to be worsening after he slowed to a halt with a sensor issue during the only practice session at the Red Bull Ring, but soon returned to the track to set the pace in FP1 before pipping Norris to sprint pole by 0.093 seconds.

Speaking after the session, Verstappen – searching for his sixth victory at the Red Bull since 2018 – declared it a “good start to the weekend” with the car “pretty strong” from the off on Friday.

He said: “It was positive day, to be honest. I’m happy.

“We started off the day well, the car was already in a good window. Little niggle with the sensor, but we fixed that quickly.

“And then heading into qualifying, I think the car was pretty strong. I could push.

“Of course, there will always be areas where we can do better, so we’ll look at that tonight, but definitely a good start to the weekend.”

With Norris alongside him on the front row, and his team-mate Oscar Piastri three tenths back in third, Verstappen is wary of the threat McLaren pose this weekend.

And he believes the 24-lap mini race on Sunday’s will offer a clue to how the grand prix will play out after Verstappen acknowledged that McLaren had a quicker car in Barcelona last weekend.

He said: “At the end of the day, when everyone is pushing flat out, they are again behind me so for sure they’re quick as well.

“We seem quick in the high speed, which of course is nice around here.

“Hopefully we can keep that going also tomorrow, but of course the sprint race will give us an early indication of how the pace will be in the race for every car, so I’m looking forward to that.”