Max Verstappen seeks overnight fix after 'tricky' Monza Friday

Max Verstappen has called for overnight improvements from Red Bull after a "tricky" opening day at the Italian Grand Prix, where he could only manage ninth in FP2.

The four-time world champion missed first practice at Monza as rookie Ayumu Iwasa took over his car, leaving him with just 60 minutes of running in the afternoon. It was a difficult session, with Verstappen ending up behind the leading teams as well as Arvid Lindblad and Oliver Bearman.

Why it matters:

Red Bull remains comfortably adrift of the top three outfits, and Monza's low-downforce layout has exposed the car's weaknesses. However, with the tow expected to play a significant role, there could be opportunities for the Austrian team to gain positions in qualifying and the race.

The details:

• Verstappen's only running came in FP2, limiting his time to find a comfortable setup.
• He ended the session ninth, behind both Haas drivers and the top teams.
• Balance issues: "It was tricky to get the balance of the car right today and we will need to work on this for tomorrow to find a little bit more lap time," said Verstappen.
• Gap to front: "Our gap is still big compared to the front runners, but I hope that we can close it a little bit in qualifying over one lap."
• Race pace: Verstappen is hopeful of being closer in the race, though he admitted long-run performance is "trickier to predict."

What's next:

Red Bull will work overnight to try and improve the car's balance. Verstappen remains cautiously optimistic that positive changes can be made before qualifying.

"We are looking at what we can do overnight with the car and see if we can make some positive changes and try and get the true corner balance together," he added.