'We lost track somewhere' - Red Bull drivers admits 'wired' RB20 performance during FP1 and FP2 of Spanish Grand Prix

Red Bull encountered significant challenges during the first day of practice at the Spanish Grand Prix. With both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez struggling to find optimal performance from their cars it ended as a very bad day for Red Bull racing.

Verstappen, known for his relentless pursuit of perfection, found himself only fifth fastest after the second practice session (FP2). He was 0.240 seconds behind the quickest time set by Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton. Ferrari's Carlos Sainz, McLaren's Lando Norris, and Alpine's Pierre Gasly also managed to outpace the three-time champion. Despite this, Verstappen remained composed, attributing his issues to setup experimentation rather than any fundamental flaw with the car.

During FP2, Verstappen communicated with his team about handling difficulties, describing the car as "loose in the exits" and experiencing "weird understeer mid-corner." He expressed that "this car doesn’t bite," highlighting his dissatisfaction with its responsiveness.

Sergio Perez continues to struggle in RB20!

In contrast, Sergio Perez had a more troublesome session. Red Bull's attempts to adjust his car's setup backfired, leaving him languishing in 13th place. Perez, facing a three-place grid penalty from a previous incident in Canada, can ill afford another poor qualifying performance.

Perez admitted to losing direction after making significant setup changes between sessions. "I started the day well but then into FP2 we made quite a lot of changes and we lost track somewhere," he said. He emphasized the importance of analyzing the data to make better decisions for the following sessions, recognizing that qualifying well is critical at the Circuit de Barcelona - Catalunya due to the difficulty of overtaking.

Despite the setbacks, Verstappen remains optimistic about Red Bull’s prospects. He noted that the day's activities were more about experimenting with different setups and refining the car's performance, a common practice during Friday sessions. Verstappen downplayed the significance of his radio messages, suggesting that they were a normal part of his perfectionist approach.

He said, "We just tried a few different setups out there in FP1 and FP2, trying to fine-tune a little bit, but at least I think the day itself was a bit more normal without any issues. That's what we were hoping for, and now it's about just trying to tidy up the car a little bit, but that's quite normal. They're very tiny, nothing too big but so far everything is feeling normal."