Formula 1 Saudi Arabian GP
Max Verstappen: Red Bull is "not where I want it to be" in Jeddah
Verstappen believes the Red Bull Formula 1 squad has improved its one-lap pace, but is still concerned by the deficit to McLaren
Jake Boxall-Legge
Edited: Apr 19, 2025, 8:25 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Red Bull may have found a "better" feeling on one-lap pace in practice for the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, but Max Verstappen notes overall performance on the long runs is still "not where I want it to be".
The four-time world champion came third in FP2 after finishing only ninth in FP1, and was just over a quarter of a second behind the McLarens in the second session with his run on the soft tyre.
It was expected, due to the smoother track surface and lower degradation levels, that Red Bull would be less hamstrung by its troublesome RB21 on tyre management over the course of the race-style runs.
But the Dutchman noted that the longer stints were still "very tough", amid the team's explorations of different set-ups across the two Friday sessions.
"We tried some different things with the car, trying to find maybe a different direction with it, and I think we learned a lot from it," he said.
"It's still not where I want it to be; personally I don't really look at the gaps and I think at the end of the day you have to just go from your own feeling and what you feel in the car over one lap, and it's a bit better. But in the long runs, they were very tough for us."
Watch: Why Hamilton Was Doom and Gloom in the F1 Paddock - Saudi Arabia GP Practice Analysis
Verstappen expects Red Bull to improve overnight and noted that McLaren’s advantage over other teams was still large, as Lando Norris' chart-topping FP2 time of a 1m28.267s was 0.28s quicker than the world champion.
His Red Bull team-mate Yuki Tsunoda was not far away on ultimate pace before crashing during the closing stages of FP2, having clipped the wall at the final corner.
"It's a different [feeling to Bahrain] because it's a different track and grip levels are different, but also the set-up is completely different, so it's very hard to compare,” added Verstappen.
"I think one standout is of course again McLaren being very competitive, but from our side there's still quite a bit of work to do and things to understand."
Photos from Saudi Arabian GP - Practice
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
2025 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix - Friday
Formula 1
71
Read Also:
Formula 1Yuki Tsunoda takes blame for Jeddah FP2 F1 crash
Formula 1Despite Yuki Tsunoda's Saudi smash, Christian Horner hails his progress
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Despite Yuki Tsunoda's Saudi smash, Christian Horner hails his progress
Next article This $500k luxury apartment boasts a front-row seat to F1 in Saudi Arabia
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jake Boxall-Legge
Isack Hadjar to make Red Bull return at F1 Azerbaijan GP
Formula 1
Formula 1
Azerbaijan GP
Isack Hadjar to make Red Bull return at F1 Azerbaijan GP
F1 Monaco GP: Kimi Antonelli takes dominant win in non-score for George Russell
Formula 1
Formula 1
Monaco GP
F1 Monaco GP: Kimi Antonelli takes dominant win in non-score for George Russell
More from
Max Verstappen
Charles Leclerc admits he missed a chance against Max Verstappen – but not the obvious one
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
Charles Leclerc admits he missed a chance against Max Verstappen – but not the obvious one
The hidden factor that gives Max Verstappen and Red Bull extra hope for 2027
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
The hidden factor that gives Max Verstappen and Red Bull extra hope for 2027
More from
Red Bull Racing
Laurent Mekies extends contract as Red Bull's F1 team boss
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
1 h
Laurent Mekies extends contract as Red Bull's F1 team boss
Christian Horner opens up on Red Bull F1 exit: “Perhaps it was perceived I had too much influence over the team”
Formula 1
Formula 1 4 h
Christian Horner opens up on Red Bull F1 exit: “Perhaps it was perceived I had too much influence over the team”
Latest news
Why Christian Horner banned Mercedes' name as Red Bull built its own F1 engine
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
7 min
Why Christian Horner banned Mercedes' name as Red Bull built its own F1 engine
Laurent Mekies extends contract as Red Bull's F1 team boss
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
1 h
Laurent Mekies extends contract as Red Bull's F1 team boss
Alex Palou to drive Indy NXT machinery in Chris Griffis Memorial Test at IMS
IndyCar
Indy IndyCar 1 h
Alex Palou to drive Indy NXT machinery in Chris Griffis Memorial Test at IMS
The six drivers doing double duty in Portimao GTWCE and Barcelona WEC this weekend
WEC
WEC WEC
Barcelona
2 h
The six drivers doing double duty in Portimao GTWCE and Barcelona WEC this weekend
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe