piastri Sets Fastest Time as Verstappen Voices Frustration in Qatar Practice
Doha, Qatar – Oscar Piastri of McLaren topped the timesheets in practice for the Qatar Grand Prix, setting the fastest lap time. meanwhile, reigning World Champion Max Verstappen experienced a challenging session, voicing a series of complaints about his Red Bull car’s performance.
Piastri consistently ranked within the top 10, ultimately achieving the quickest time with soft tires. Lando Norris, Piastri’s teammate, initially struggled but improved to a top-five position after receiving guidance from his team on areas for betterment, ultimately finishing behind Piastri. He was attempting a final fast lap on soft tires when he ran off track in the final corner,aborting the attempt.
Verstappen reported issues early in the session, stating after just five laps, “The left front tire is giving way.” He continued to express concerns, noting, “The steering suddenly feels strange,” and later, “shifting feels slow and hard.” He also described the car as “poorly damped,” saying, “Every time I take my foot off the accelerator, the car jumps like crazy,” and complained of insufficient energy exiting Turn 6.
Sky expert Ralf Schumacher commented, “That’s not good.It means that you started with the wrong set-up again.”
Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies downplayed the issues, telling Sky: “Everything is fine, no problem.” Despite the difficulties, Verstappen managed the third-best time on hard tires, half a second behind Piastri and Norris, and remained over 0.5 seconds off the pace on soft tires.
The Qatar Grand Prix weekend continues on Friday with sprint qualifying at 6:30 p.m. local time.
