Max previews Saudi Arabia GP: 'Difficulty with the balance'

Published on 17 April 2025 by Stefan Meens

Max Verstappen arrived in Jeddah ahead of this weekend’s Saudi Arabia Grand Prix. The reigning F1 champion addressed the media in the Jeddah Corniche Circuit’s paddock and previewed the race at the high-speed semi-street circuit.

“Hopefully it’s better than Bahrain. There are more high-speed turns and a different track surface, so I hope we’re more competitive”, said the Oracle Red Bull Racing driver. “This race is usually a one-stopper, but we’ll have to wait how the softer Pirelli tyres will cope, because it’s set to be warm.”

The Dutchman added: “I really love this circuit, because it’s tough and challenging. It’s anticlockwise, so it’s hard on the neck. Regardless, it’s difficult to judge how strong we’ll be, but it will be a lot more difficult than the past two years when we were very competitive and dominated.”

Red Bull is simultaneously working on this year’s RB21 as well as the 2026 car. Is that managable? “We have enough experience to concentrate both on this year and next year. Of course, we’re constantly looking to improve the car, also in terms of set-up. We’ll keep doing that this weekend. Bahrain wasn’t a good weekend and we are dissapointed. We try to improve the car with new ideas, but the competition is strong.”

How would you like to see the RB21 improved? “We have difficulty with the balance. On corner entry, into the middle of the corner, the balance isn’t how I would like it. That’s something we’re trying to change. Hopefully the track surface helps with that. I’m not happy with the car currently, but nobody in the team is. We all want to do better; that’s not a secret. We’re working hard and are having good conversations as a team about the car. We’re all on the same page.”

Regarding this year’s world championship, how do you view your chances? “That’s not something I’m thinking about now. Every race we try to maximise and hopefully things are better here than in Bahrain. We don’t have the fastest car, so it will be difficult to challenge for the title. But there are still a lot of races to go. I’m hopeful we can improve and then we’ll see where we end up.”

Contest GP Djeddah: win a by Max Verstappen signed Red Bull Racing 2025 cap!