Red Bull targets slow-corner pace and bump handling before Austin qualifying

Red Bull has two clear targets before qualifying at the Circuit of the Americas: improve low-speed performance and make the RB22 cope better with the bumps, technical director Pierre Wache said after Friday practice.

Verstappen called Friday a positive start. Across the two sessions, he recorded a second and a third place, each less than two tenths behind Charles Leclerc, who topped both. Verstappen said Red Bull had worked on the car’s balance between FP1 and FP2, but still needed to fine-tune it.

The lap comparison helps explain Wache’s low-speed focus. Red Bull appeared competitive in the high-speed sections; Verstappen was nearly a tenth ahead of Leclerc at the end of the long straight, just before braking, but lost considerable ground through Turns 12 to 16. Leclerc was also strong on the brakes and on the exits of Turns 1 and 11.

The bumps pose the other challenge. On Thursday’s media day, Verstappen called them “unacceptable” and “out of control”. Wache said the car was jumping over them, especially under braking at Turn 1. Wache’s reference to the set-up was about the current generation of F1 cars, not a choice unique to Red Bull. Active aero and straight mode lift the cars slightly on the straights, limiting skid-block wear and giving teams more latitude over ride height. Under braking and through corners, the cars run low—exactly where the Circuit of the Americas is at its bumpiest.