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Former F1 driver Marc Surer has criticized Red Bull for failing to address their reliability issues, which have cost Max Verstappen twice in the first three races of this season. Surer feels the team’s issues create a “bad impression” and hopes they will be able to bring a fix soon.
Speaking to Motorsport Deutschland, he said:
“With 23 races, that’s actually not that much. It sounds like a lot; it makes a bad impression. What happened now in Melbourne is that a line breaks, so either they have a weak point in there or it was installed poorly. So that shouldn’t really happen. Either the part was simply too weak or not properly designed, or what I rather think, because a car came through that was probably just sloppy during assembly.”
Max Verstappen retired for the second time in three races at last weekend’s Australian GP after a suspected fuel delivery system failure. The reigning world champion faced a similar issue during the closing stages of the season-opening Bahrain GP, forcing him and teammate Sergio Perez to retire.
Red Bull bounced back in Saudi Arabia, with Verstappen taking victory and Perez coming home in P4. The three retirements in Bahrain and Australia, however, have cost the team dearly.
Despite often being on pace with Ferrari, the team currently sits in third place in the constructors' table, behind Mercedes and with just half as many points as the Scuderia.
Surer believes Milton Keynes will need to hammer out their issues soon to stay in the championship battle. Despite the early setback, he felt the team were capable of clawing back their deficit against Ferrari. He went to add, saying:
“Red Bull also knows how to make a car fast. They already know where their weaknesses are. So, I’m not really worried that sooner or later they will find the connection again one hundred percent.”
Red Bull’s issues have “unsettled” Max Verstappen: Surer
Marc Surer feels Red Bull’s reliability issues have “unsettled” Max Verstappen’s composure, with the Dutchman displaying his relaxed and calm composure during pre-season testing. Speaking to Motorsport Deutschland, he said:
“During testing, I [still] thought, he’s arrived, he seems incredibly calm and relaxed. But now in the races [...] he’s impatient. And I think that has something to do with the fact that he just doesn’t do that superior car he was hoping for.”
Surer pointed out Sergio Perez’s impressive performances in the last two races, where the Mexican seemed to have the upper hand over his teammate. The former racing driver from Switzerland felt Verstappen was taking more risks with his car, thereby making more mistakes.
