Verstappen performs well in practice

Max Verstappen, driving for Red Bull, consistently finished in the top three during the two free practice sessions at the United States Grand Prix on Friday. The Austrian team, which has won the last two races, seems to be maintaining its strong performance, even though the Circuit of the Americas poses specific challenges for their RB22 car.

Challenges of the Circuit of the Americas

Verstappen said he was happy with the first day, despite the difficulties of the Texan track. The circuit's bumps and mix of fast and slow corners make it hard to find the right balance between aerodynamic and mechanical settings. "It's a positive start to the weekend. This circuit is never easy when it comes to finding the right compromise between low and high-speed corners," he said.

Improvements made between sessions

Verstappen mentioned that changes made between the two practice sessions helped improve his car's handling, though some adjustments are still needed. "There is still a bit of work to fine-tune the balance, but it wasn't a bad day at all," he added.

Hadjar struggles with tire management

Isack Hadjar, another Red Bull driver, faced more challenges, especially with the soft tires. The Frenchman finished ninth in the second session and had a more difficult Friday, despite starting the weekend on a positive note. The main issue was controlling the temperature of the soft tires throughout the lap. "The first sector was good, but after that, we had tire temperature problems for the rest of the lap," Hadjar said.

Team focuses on data and balance

Hadjar believes the data collected will help the team improve before qualifying, particularly by adjusting the overall balance of his car. Pierre Waché, Red Bull's technical director, acknowledged that finding the right settings has been more complex than expected. Despite a less rigid setup compared to last year, the RB22 remains sensitive to bumps on the track.

Tire management becomes a priority

The team also had to fix a steering issue on Verstappen's car during the first session, but they saw progress in the second. Waché said there is still work to be done on both cars, especially Isack's, but the team is close to the right settings. Tire management is now a major focus, as the fast corners in the first sector can cause excessive wear, affecting performance later in the race.

Balancing race and qualifying needs

Waché explained that the main challenge this weekend is managing tire degradation during long stints while ensuring that the settings chosen for race pace don't hurt performance in qualifying. Red Bull aims to improve handling in slow corners without sacrificing speed in fast sections. With Verstappen leading and room for improvement on both cars, the team has a strong base to build on for the rest of the weekend.