Ferstappen is confident despite the DRS problem

Max Ferstappen is confident that Red Bull has the pace to beat Ferrari after the DRS problem prevented him from fighting for a pole position at the Spanish Grand Prix.

In the first races in the 3rd quarter, Ferstappen was on the previous pole after Charles Leclerc turned in the first attempt, but the championship leader repulsed the blow, and on the last lap went away by 0.3 seconds. The Dutch driver was unable to respond as his DRS could not open on the pit directly, but he believes the work done by Red Bull during FP3 made the car one lap faster and better on the tires.

“It’s hard to say [if pole position was possible]. A lot of people improved in the second run, which is perfectly normal, ”Ferstappen said. “But my DRS didn’t open, so I felt the power loss was due to traction. It’s a shame – we at least had the opportunity.

“This weekend it was a little harder for us to find a good balance in the car. [Ferrari] brought updates that probably helped them a bit over time, so for us [not bringing any significant upgrades], it was a little trickier, but let’s see tomorrow. I think our long runs were pretty decent, so hopefully we can be a little closer.

“I think what we’ve improved in one lap won’t hurt our long run, just the way we’ve balanced the car. There was a little more capacity to perform on one lap. I think we definitely did well yesterday and this morning. It was a little harder for us to find a connected car, and we have it. “

Ferstappen says it’s not necessary for him to lead in the first round, even though he fought hard against Lewis Hamilton in the first round a year ago.

“It can be important because when I started here in 2016, I was fourth after the start and an accident happened. Last year I was in the lead at the start and still did not win. You need a good pace in the race; good tire management is needed here. This is very difficult for tires when cornering at high speeds. If you have the opportunity, you go for it. If not, you won’t do it, and you just die, wait for the opportunity, and hope that the package you have in the race is competitive enough to fight for victory. ”