(Motorsport-Total.com) – Max Verstappen believes that Red Bull’s extensive upgrades for the Miami Grand Prix have “almost halved” the gap to the front so far. At the same time, he still sees weaknesses in this year’s RB22 that need to be worked on.
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Red Bull is causing a stir with its own interpretation of the so-called “Macarena” rear wing: when the active aero system is activated on the straight, the wing rotates about 180 degrees. Although Ferrari was already seen testing a similar system, Red Bull emphasizes that they had developed their own version long before it appeared publicly.
The team also brings new laterally widened sidepods, which have a slide-like ramp on the top to direct airflow over the car more precisely. To integrate the newly shaped sidepods, both the engine cover and the floor have been revised. Additionally, the exhaust appears to have a flap at the outlet that functions similarly to Ferrari’s exhaust winglet at the start of the season.
Verstappen draws a positive first conclusion
After his first impression of the revised RB22, Verstappen draws a positive first conclusion and describes the car as “more coherent.” In the sprint qualifying in Miami, he finished fifth, just 0.6 seconds behind Lando Norris’s pole time. For comparison: in Suzuka, Verstappen missed Q3 after being 1.2 seconds slower than Kimi Antonelli in Q2.
“It feels more coherent. Of course, there are still things we need to work on. But it is a really positive step for us. In the last races, we were over a second behind. I would say we have now almost halved that gap,” says Verstappen.
“So that’s positive. We are still very weak in the first sector, which is mainly high speed. We need to work on that. But the rest feels a bit more coherent. I’m somewhat more satisfied with that. At least it seems like we have distanced ourselves a bit from the midfield.
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Mekies also sees a clear direction
Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies told Sky that the new parts “are going in the right direction” and both drivers confirmed that the RB22 is now more consistent.
Although many updates were designed for aerodynamic load, the FIA technical documents distributed to the media stated that improving flow stability was also a central goal of the developments.
“It has been a very intense five weeks. We know we had some problems that we needed to get to the bottom of, and I think that’s exactly what the guys have done,” says Mekies.
It is the smallest gap to pole we have had this year so far. And the competition is extremely strong, everyone is developing further. But from Max’s statements, I also hear that the car is a bit more consistent. So the direction is definitely right,” Mekies is pleased.
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