Max Verstappen: Red Bull's latest upgrades 'working well' after strong Baku practice

Max Verstappen believes Red Bull's latest round of F1 upgrades are "working well" after a "strong" practice at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The Dutchman placed third in FP2 with a new floor, diffuser and sidepod layout on the RB22, and was the only driver within a second of Mercedes' George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

Why it matters:

Red Bull arrived in Baku aiming to build on consecutive podiums in Italy and Spain. With Mercedes setting the early-season benchmark, these upgrades are a key part of Verstappen's attempt to stay in the fight. A third straight top-three finish would be his best run of 2026.

The Details:

• Verstappen ended FP2 ahead of both Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton.
• "Today was quite decent, and I was pretty happy with the car," he said. "We were working on fine-tuning a few bits and trying to find some more performance, so it was a good start for the team."
• "It looks like we are up there at the moment and could be fighting for a podium place, so we just need to find a bit more pace."
• Technical director Pierre Wache confirmed positive feedback from both drivers, apart from a gearbox issue on Isack Hadjar's car that was fixed in time for FP2.
• "Mercedes looks like the fastest car, especially on the short runs, McLaren and Ferrari are hard to assess due to a lot happening on track, but we should be up there with them," said Wache.
• Hadjar, returning from a wrist injury, was "competitive and up to speed straight away."

What's Next:

Verstappen says Red Bull needs to extract more pace to challenge Mercedes, but the early signs are encouraging. "The upgrades are working well, which is positive, so we will see how it plays out tomorrow," he said. Qualifying will be the first real test.