Call it a jab from Max Verstappen, a playful prod, or a hint. But the brief comment from the driver during his media session in Las Vegas was certainly telling. “I hope that in the last three races we will see the true, full performance of all cars.”
This statement is tied to yet another debate about technology and what is and isn’t allowed on the cars. A lot has been happening behind the scenes lately, Verstappen knows too. He spoke about the recent GPs of Red Bull, with improvements for example in Austin and a disappointing race in Mexico City. And then, subtly: “Some things have hopefully changed since then. But not necessarily on our side.”
Red Bull raised the issue with the FIA, due to a regulatory permitted trick with the so-called skid blocks. It helps in setting the car as low as possible. The FIA has now put a stop to this. Red Bull, according to various media, was itself one of the users and thus suffers from the change in regulations; other teams even more so, making it interesting to see what it does to the balance of power. Hence, the context in which you can place Verstappen’s jabbing remarks.
The Dutchman, however, does not expect miracles from Red Bull in the battle with McLaren and Ferrari this weekend in Las Vegas. “Because in dry weather we still lack speed. Winning in Brazil was nice and special, but it doesn’t mean that everything is suddenly great.
