Max Verstappen has a clear goal for the Chinese Grand Prix. The Dutchman wants to be back in the fight at the front of the field, after falling behind in Melbourne due to his crash in qualifying. Verstappen then started the race from twentieth place and finished sixth behind the Mercedes, Ferraris, and McLaren’s Lando Norris. ‘It was promising to see that we made a good comeback in the race’, said the four-time world champion.
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Max Verstappen drove an impressive recovery race during the first Grand Prix of the year in Australia. The Dutchman started from twentieth place but crossed the finish line in sixth. Although there is still a lot of work to be done for the RB22 according to the world champion, he also looks back on the opening race with satisfaction.
“It was good to be racing again and it was promising to see that we made a good comeback in the race”, Verstappen looks back once more in the preview for the Chinese GP. “The team has done a great job to get to where we are now, but there is still a lot to do and we can learn a lot from that race. We were particularly affected by tire wear in Melbourne, which can also be a problem at this circuit in Shanghai, and energy management is something we can also look at.”
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‘Joining the fight’
For Verstappen, the goal for the race weekend in Shanghai is clear. “We continue to collect data and work on improving the car”, says the Red Bull driver. “We are still learning and we want to be more involved in the fight this week.” Although the Chinese GP does bring an extra challenge to achieve the latter. “It is of course a sprint weekend, so we have less time to work on the car’s setup, so we have to make sure we get off to a good start right away. The circuit is quite unique, with a fairly challenging layout with various corners, but with plenty of opportunities for overtaking.” Verstappen won the Chinese GP once before. In 2024, the world champion in the RB20 was a good thirteen seconds faster than the rest of the field.
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