Red Bull need further time to bring their car more in tune with the driving style of Max Verstappen, Christian Horner has admitted. The Dutch racer has complained that the RB18 is lacking the front-end grip that he desires, with teammate Sergio Perez feeling the more comfortable driver after eight races of the 2022 season. Verstappen's father, Jos, publicly criticised Red Bull following the Monaco Grand Prix when he claimed that they had built a car more suited to their second driver. And the World Champion himself admits that still, even after four race wins, he is not yet content with the car under him. Verstappen told media, including RacingNews365.com : "I definitely see, of course, Checo is a bit more comfortable than last year. For my side, yeah, I would like a bit more front end, that's what we're working at."
Why does the RB18 not suit Verstappen's style?
Verstappen would rather his Red Bull was lighter, smaller and more nimble through the corners, something that would better suit his driving style. However, last winter's regulation change has very much worked against the Dutchman. "I don't say like I'm uncomfortable in the car, but these cars are so heavy, and long, and wide that, with increased weight as well, you want a car which turns better, because it just goes faster around a corner," he continued. "And you can extract a bit more in qualifying when you really push it, which [we] cannot at the moment, but it's not all very dramatic. "I mean, I still won four races. So, that's more than I did last year at this time. So, it's not that bad. It's just fine-tuning little things."
Horner: We will make Max more comfortable
Red Bull boss Christian Horner says the team will eventually bring their car more in tune with Verstappen's style, with the cost cap having prevented them from making any drastic changes this early in the season. "It's all part of the evolution of these cars," said Horner, ahead of a Canadian Grand Prix weekend in which his team can make it six consecutive wins for only the second time in their history. "The development is of course very sporadic within the cost cap. We will eventually find more with set-up, the more mileage that we do, as well. "Slowly but surely we get to the situation where Max feels more comfortable, but in the races it clearly has less effect on him than during qualifying."
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