"It was a bit more tricky than I think I would have hoped" - Max Verstappen feels Red Bull lacked a bit in 2022 F1 French GP qualifying

Max Verstappen rued the lack of general grip of his Red Bull RB18 after missing out on pole position during the qualifying session for the 2022 F1 French GP.

The 24-year-old had no answer for Ferrari's pace advantage around the Circuit Paul Ricard on a balmy Saturday afternoon. This despite having impressed during FP3, finishing the session with the fastest time, 0.354 seconds ahead of Carlos Sainz in P2.

Ferrari chose to use Sainz to give Leclerc a slipstream advantage given the fact that the Spaniard is set to start the race at the bottom of the grid after taking on a full new set of Power Unit (PU) components. This paid off as Verstappen could not get ahead of Leclerc on the timesheet even once during Q3.

Speaking to former F1 driver turned analyst Johnny Herbert in his post-session interview after qualifying, Max Verstappen said:

“Well, FP3 is not qualifying clearly. Overall, I think we were lacking a bit in qualifying, just general grip. So, it was a bit more tricky than I think I would have hoped but overall we still have a decent race car. Hopefully, tomorrow will come into our favour, we’re quick on the straights so we can use that tomorrow.’’

When asked if he feels Red Bull can outpace the Prancing Horse over the course of the race distance on Sunday, the reigning world champion added:

“We’ll find out tomorrow. I mean, it is also going to be warmer but clearly they’ve been really quick again.’’

Max Verstappen will have the advantage of having his teammate Sergio Perez behind him in P3 and the pair can launch a two-pronged Red Bull attack on pole sitter Charles Leclerc.

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Will tire degradation haunt Max Verstappen in 2022 F1 French GP like it did in Austria?

Max Verstappen's main concern for the 2022 F1 French GP could be the issue that prevented him from fighting for a win two weeks ago in Austria.

Red Bull has been no stranger to extensive tire degradation this season. Its worst degradation was seen at the Red Bull Ring when Max Verstappen was a proverbial sitting duck for Charles Leclerc to overtake thrice.

Given that the temperatures are soaring at Le Castellet (Circuit Paul Ricard) and are far higher than they were in the Styrian foothills, tire degradation could once again be the key factor that makes or breaks the Dutchman's race.

Pirelli F1 boss Mario Isola has said that the new generation of tire compounds are better designed to prevent them from overheating, but it remains to be seen how things will play out in actual race conditions.

Heading into the 53-lap race on Sunday, Verstappen still leads the World Drivers' Championship standings with 208 points. Ferrari's Leclerc is 38 points behind the Dutchman in P2.