Verstappen, meanwhile, was around half a second slower than Leclerc, having experienced several lock-ups and off-track excursions but been left with a similarly positive feeling about his and the team’s prospects.
“I think overall a good day,” he commented. “We learned quite a bit. Now it’s just about tidying up the things that we tried. But I think, so far, we have been more competitive this weekend, so that’s a positive.”
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As for those moments behind the wheel, he said: “It’s also the track, it’s very slippery, a lot of 90-degree corners, so if you have a tiny lock, sometimes you hold the brake to not hit the wall or whatever, just out of precaution.
“But, for sure, FP2 was a bit more difficult for me, so like I said, we just need to get the balance together a bit more. I’m quite confident that we can be competitive.”
