Max Verstappen still searching for rhythm after 's***' start in Bahrain

It was not all plain sailing for Max Verstappen and Red Bull on Friday as the reigning world champion endured a trying start to the 2023 F1 season in Bahrain.

The 25-year-old Dutchman claimed P3 behind team-mate Sergio Perez in FP1 before moving up to a spot to P2 behind the Aston Martin of Fernando Alonso in the evening session.

It would be fair to say things could only improve in that second session for Verstappen after a challenging start to his bid for a hat-trick of world titles.

Tough start for Verstappen in the RB19

Red Bull adviser Helmut Marko said there were problems with the RB19 in FP1, revealing: "In Max's case there was a big change in the behaviour of the car, something we can't explain at the moment".

The problem continued in the second session with Verstappen venting his frustration on team radio as he told his team: "I feel like I'm bouncing all over the place, this is really shit".

Eventually things did improve in Verstappen's long run, before he explained the ups and downs of his day once FP2 had been completed.

Verstappen reflects on Friday practice

"We had a difficult start to the day. The first FP was really bad, I couldn't find a balance. That was a bit strange because in testing, whatever we tried wasn't as bad as today. So a few things we need to understand.

"Also the start of FP2 was a bit tricky, even with little reference and confidence up to that point, the last run wasn't bad, the car felt a bit better, overall the car wasn't bad at all in the long run.

"I was a bit surprised that we had this speed. I just need to find my rhythm with the car again. It was a bad start to the day, but we are moving in the right direction again."

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