Max Verstappen sends clear Red Bull warning after Monaco surprise

Max Verstappen has warned against drawing premature conclusions from Red Bull's encouraging Monaco Grand Prix qualifying performance, insisting that this week's Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix will provide a far more accurate measure of the team's progress.

The Dutchman secured a front-row start in Monte Carlo after qualifying second behind Kimi Antonelli, narrowly missing out on what would have been his first pole position of the F1 season.

It marked Red Bull's strongest qualifying displays of the campaign, and came as a surprise given the team's well-documented struggles over bumps and kerbs, which are prevalent in the Principality.

Although the Milton Keynes-based squad's fledgling power unit — built in partnership with Ford — has been declared the benchmark in F1 as part of the FIA's ADUO programme, the RB22 has proven a troublesome chassis for the Laurent Mekies-led outfit to grapple with early in the year.

However, the unique demands of the Circuit de Monaco appeared to mask some of the car's shortcomings.

"You always have to run the car reasonably soft here in terms of set-up and suspension," Verstappen explained to Dutch media, including RacingNews365, after qualifying. "In that area, it was better, but it is still our limitation when it comes to going faster."

Despite ending the grid-setting session just short of pole, Verstappen admitted he had not expected Red Bull to be in contention at the front.

"In that respect, I'm still a bit surprised that we were ultimately fighting for pole position," he said. "Of course, we changed a few things after the third practice session, but it wasn't that much."

When asked whether the track conditions had perhaps played into Red Bull's hands, the four-time F1 drivers' champion remained unconvinced, adding: "Normally, that wouldn't be the case."

The biggest test is yet to come

While Monaco offered reasons for optimism, Verstappen was keen to place the result in context. The narrow street circuit is unlike any other venue on the calendar, and the 28-year-old believes the true picture will emerge this weekend in Barcelona.

"This is positive, but next week it's a completely different circuit," he said. "Then it's a different world again."

The RB22 has shown flashes of improvement in recent races, particularly at circuits dominated by lower-speed corners. Still, Verstappen believes it remains too early to declare that Red Bull has fully solved its problems.

"That has already been the case recently, but we've also raced at circuits with mainly slow corners," he pointed out. "We just have to wait and see.

"When Barcelona comes around, that's the real test because you have high-speed corners again. We shouldn't start celebrating too soon."

Qualifying proved to be the high point of Verstappen's weekend in Monaco, with his car agonisingly failing to get off the line with a power unit issue.

After the Dutchman managed to get his Red Bull to limp home to the pits for a first lap retirement, he reiterated his stance on the upcoming round in Barcelona.

"Completely different tracks," he told Sky Sports F1. "It will be a good test to see if we actually really made a proper step forward or not, because that's all about high speed and aerodynamic performance. So it will be an interesting weekend."