SQ3 was the type of session that Verstappen, a three-time Formula 1 World Champion, thoroughly enjoys. His wide smile as he left the pits in the powerful Red Bull RB20 indicated that he believed pole position was within his grasp. However, he soon encountered difficulties with traction and expressed his struggle after the exhilarating Sprint Race Qualifying session in Shanghai on Friday. Verstappen admitted, “The track was incredibly slippery. I had a lot of trouble getting the tires up to temperature, which made it very challenging to keep the car on track. It felt like driving on ice. Although we performed well in dry conditions, it just didn’t work for me in the wet. Despite that, I’m still quite pleased with our performance.”
One might wonder if the impressive Red Bull RB20, designed by the talented Adrian Newey and his team, lacks grip in slippery conditions. This suspicion was reinforced by the car’s performance in Melbourne and again today in the wet. Ultimately, Verstappen could only manage a fourth-place finish, trailing Lando Norris’ outstanding lap in the McLaren by two seconds. Nevertheless, the Dutch driver outperformed his RBR teammate Sergio Perez by four-tenths of a second. Perez, a seasoned veteran, will start in sixth position for Saturday’s Sprint Race, just behind Verstappen’s car.
Starting from fourth place on the grid, directly behind his rival Lewis Hamilton, Verstappen faces an intriguing challenge. Regarding his chances in the Sprint Race, he commented, “Starting on the inside here is not ideal due to the lower grip from left to right caused by the painted surface on the tarmac. We’ll have to aim for the best start possible. Then, I anticipate a relatively long stint on one set of tires, which should make things quite interesting.” Verstappen, the current leader of the 2024 F1 World Championship, remains optimistic.
Meanwhile, Perez had a different experience in the sister RBR #11 car. He initially had a promising run, but encountered traffic and struggled with the final corner. As a result, he went off the track, preventing him from achieving a better position.
Perez is currently experiencing a successful period and is feeling more confident and at ease while driving. Despite facing a minor setback during today’s Qualifying, he believes that their race pace will help them overcome it.
According to Perez, he feels that they are in a favorable position and has had immediate confidence in the car. He believes that they can be competitive in any conditions going forward, which is a very promising outlook for the team.
China is hosting the first of six Sprint Race weekends in the 2024 F1 World Championship. This is the first time the race is being held in Shanghai since 2019.
It is worth noting that Red Bull has only won the Chinese GP twice, with Daniel Ricciardo (20??) and Sebastian Vettel (20?). Neither Verstappen nor Perez have ever won this race. Verstappen has only finished on the podium once out of the five times he has raced in China. In 2017, he managed to climb from P16 on the grid to P2 by the end of the race. In 2019, he finished in fourth place.
During the previous Chinese Grand Prix, Perez achieved his highest finish in Shanghai, coming in eighth place for Racing Point (now Aston Martin). This was his best result out of the nine times he has raced in Shanghai. This report was made possible by BC.GAME. (Additional Reporting by Agnes Carlier in Shanghai)