Formula 1 United States GP
Red Bull unsure of cause of Verstappen's cracked rear wing
Red Bull remains unsure of the cause of the hairline crack in Max Verstappen’s rear wing that gave it some concerns ahead of qualifying at Formula 1’s United States Grand Prix.
Jonathan Noble
Edited: Oct 24, 2021, 10:45 AM
Copy link
Share on Viber
After Verstappen had produced a strong lap in final practice before it was deleted for track limits, Red Bull discovered there was a visible crack in his rear wing.
The team elected to make repairs to it to beef it up before qualifying, as well as strengthening the wing on teammate Sergio Perez’s car as a further precaution.
But without a definite answer as to what caused the problem, Red Bull will conduct further investigations overnight before deciding if the wing will be OK for the race.
“There's always something going on,” Horner told Sky Sports F1. “There's never a stress-free session.
“I don't know whether Max hit something, as [there was] quite a crack, and nothing on the other car or any of the other wings.
“We got permission just to beef it up a bit on both cars, so we'll have a closer look at it tonight.”
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB16B, in the pits during practice
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Despite the concerns about the rear wing, both Verstappen and Perez were able to produce strong qualifying sessions as they kept title rival Lewis Hamilton at bay.
And with Mercedes having not been able to build on the pace-setting form it showed in opening practice, Horner says Red Bull had managed to make good gains.
“Yesterday the set-up we arrived at the track with was a little bit out, but I think we just tuned the car in,” he explained. “We've managed to improve the traction and we've managed to improve the car a bit over the bumps. The drivers are definitely... you can see their confidence has just grown and grown. So that was a big factor.
“And I think particularly on the mediums, we were debating at one point, would the medium be the better tyre for Q3?”
Mercedes reckoned that the story of the weekend so far was that Red Bull had indeed made good progress with its speed, while the world champion outfit had pretty much stood still.
Chief technical officer James Allison said: “After FP1, FP2 was a bit more of a struggle and it's been a little bit that way since. We've been up at the sharp end, but not really with the edge that we've seen in the recent races, so not easy.”
Asked if it was more Mercedes had lost speed or Red Bull had gained, Allison said: “Probably a little bit of each. Remember we are running in qualifying very similar set-ups to where we started in FP1, having migrated a bit in between time and then come back. So I think probably it's a bit more of Red Bull having a stronger weekend of development than we did.”
Read Also:
- F1 Grand Prix qualifying results: Verstappen takes US pole
- Verstappen feared late drizzle would scupper USGP F1 pole chance
- Hamilton: Mercedes ‘fell back a little’ through practice, qualifying
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 F1 Grand Prix qualifying results: Verstappen takes US pole
Next article Formula 1 United States Grand Prix – How to watch, start time & more
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Jonathan Noble
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
Formula 1
Formula 1
Brundle awarded OBE in King’s New Year’s honours
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Formula 1
Formula 1
The new rules dilemma that will define the 2025 F1 season
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
Formula 1
Formula 1
Australian GP
Verstappen issues Red Bull title warning in push for RB21 progress
More from
Red Bull Racing
Christian Horner takes cheeky swipe at Guenther Steiner: 'He never achieved an F1 podium'
Formula 1
Formula 1
Singapore GP
18 h
Christian Horner takes cheeky swipe at Guenther Steiner: 'He never achieved an F1 podium'
Christian Horner admits that F1 rivalry with Toto Wolff became "theatre"
Formula 1
Formula 1 23 h
Christian Horner admits that F1 rivalry with Toto Wolff became "theatre"
Latest news
Max Verstappen on GTWC Europe debut: “We’re here to win”
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance
WCEE GT World Challenge Europe Endurance 8 h
Max Verstappen on GTWC Europe debut: “We’re here to win”
How to watch NASCAR at Phoenix II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
NASCAR Cup
NAS NASCAR Cup
Phoenix II
8 h
How to watch NASCAR at Phoenix II: Weekend schedule, start time, entry list, TV
Ryan Ellis signs multi-year NASCAR O'Reilly deal with Alpha Prime Racing
NASCAR O'Reilly
NOAP NASCAR O'Reilly
Phoenix II
8 h
Ryan Ellis signs multi-year NASCAR O'Reilly deal with Alpha Prime Racing
Ayao Komatsu: Rafael Camara chosen for F1 2027 seat on speed, not Ferrari links
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
Singapore GP
15 h
Ayao Komatsu: Rafael Camara chosen for F1 2027 seat on speed, not Ferrari links
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