Verstappen delivers ominous reaction after RB20 debut

Max Verstappen has asserted that he is already feeling comfortable behind the wheel of the RB20 following its season debut in Bahrain.

The reigning World Champion tackled the first day of pre-season testing and set a mammoth 143 laps across the morning and afternoon outings.

As well as his high lap tally, Verstappen ended the day with the fastest lap time, which was over one second ahead of the competition.

The Dutchman enters the new campaign following his highly dominant campaign last year which saw him secure 19 race victories en route to his third F1 title.

“It's nice to be back,” told Verstappen.nl. “I also think we had a good day.

“We were able to do a lot of laps, and with the car we were able to try out quite a lot of things, so very happy overall.”

Red Bull is expected to be the favourites once again for the new campaign having been able to swap focus onto its fresh challenger earlier than its rivals last year.

With just a single day of running under his belt, Verstappen is already anticipating that he has a competitive machine at his disposal

“All in all happy to be back in a Formula 1 car,” he said. “For the first few laps, you'll be surprised at how fast it is compared to everything else.

“I had a lot of fun today. I was very happy with how the car responded, the balance was very good. It's just a test but we had a good day.

“I think this can be a competitive car, but it’s up to us to make the most of it. I’m really looking forward to this season.”