"Ferrari's a little bit faster than us"- Max Verstappen expects close 'battle' with Charles Leclerc at Italian GP

Max Verstappen is bracing himself for an intense battle against Ferrari's Charles Leclerc at the Italian GP in Monza on Sunday. The Red Bull driver will start in P7 and will have to make his way through the field to get to Leclerc, who will start on pole.

Analysing his team's chances of a win, Verstappen expects a nip and tuck battle between himself and Leclerc. While admitting that Ferrari are a tad quicker on the straights, Red Bull's higher downforce setup might come handy, Verstappen said.

"I think (compared) to some other cars, we still have very good top speed. I think it's just Ferraris’ a little bit faster than us on the straights, so I'm still expecting to get through the field, and hopefully once I get close to Charles, it will be a bit more of a battle, but then we have to rely on just a bit more downforce through the corners."

With Verstappen once again starting outside the top 5, the start of the race becomes crucial, and the Red Bull driver cannot afford to get caught in an incident. Talking about the things he needs to be careful of, Verstappen said that a clean start would be a top priority. He said:

"With what I've seen from the long runs, it looks good from our side. I just need to have a clean Lap One, clear the cars in between us quite quickly, and then I think we still have a good chance, yeah."

Verstappen has won the last four races as a second-straight championship looks all but guaranteed.

---

We were probably lacking a bit of straight-line speed - Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen appeared to have the legs on the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz, but his final lap was just not good enough for pole.

Talking about his qualifying performance, Verstappen said:

"Yeah, I think the lap was pretty decent. Just the first sector we seem to be a little bit slow. So probably better straight-line speed, bit of the first chicane, not finding the right grip, but I think overall the rest of that felt pretty strong."

He added:

"Yeah, we chose, of course, the downforce level a bit higher, compared to some other cars, but it felt alright and, of course, you know around here qualifying to race can always feel a bit different, and my race runs - they felt really good, so (I'm) very happy with that pace. So, I'm actually really looking forward to the race tomorrow."

Verstappen not starting in the front row could make for an interesting race on Sunday.