Have Red Bull and Verstappen found a solution to the Barcelona problem?
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- GPblog.com
Red Bull Racing may well face a very difficult weekend in France. The RB16B struggled during the Spanish Grand Prix and analysts at F1.com say this could be a bad omen for what lies ahead at Paul Ricard.
In Monaco and Azerbaijan, the warming up of the front tyres proved to be decisive. That's because of the low grip of the asphalt and the slow corners. This played into Red Bull's hands, but in Barcelona, it was the degradation of the rear tyres that proved crucial. There again Mercedes was the better man.
Challenge for Verstappen
The circuit of next weekend is in terms of characteristics quite similar to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. "It is something Verstappen was all-too-aware after his tyre blow-out cost him victory in Baku and the chance to extend his small points advantage over Hamilton," Mark Hughes and Giorgio Piola say.
Verstappen and team-mate Perez failed to set up the car in Spain to be fast enough on the straights and to suffer little tyre wear. "The big question for Paul Ricard is whether Red Bull has found an answer to that dilemma. It could be vital here."
Impact of new flexi-wings tests
In addition, Red Bull are potentially going to suffer from the new FIA tests which will have an impact on flexi-wings. If they can't use the same wing as in Barcelona, the top speed of the RB16B is likely to drop even further.