Dutchman impresses on qualifying debut for the team in Spain but is beaten to third place on the grid by Daniel Ricciardo
Sunday 15 May 2016 13:01, UK
Red Bull boss Christian Horner has hailed Max Verstappen as "the real deal" following an impressive qualifying debut with the senior team in Barcelona.
A week after his promotion as a replacement for the demoted Daniil Kvyat, Verstappen threatened to steal the headlines in Spanish GP qualifying on and even split the two Mercedes cars after the initial Q3 runs, but in the end had to settle for fourth behind new team-mate Daniel Ricciardo.
"What a first qualifying session he has had. Incredible!" Horner told Sky Sports F1. "He's jumped in the car and been quick from his first lap in the car all weekend. To qualify on the second row on his debut for the team is a remarkable performance.
"His mannerisms remind me a lot of a young German we had a couple years ago, his demeanour, his calmness in the car.
"You can see he's the real deal and I think at this stage, with this amount of experience in the car, to turn up and do what he has done is mightily impressive."
For his part, Verstappen appeared unfazed after the session, but did warn he was only going to get quicker.
"For me the main target today was just to enjoy it and get a better feeling every lap," the Dutchman said.
"It will take a few more weekends [to become comfortable in the car] but I am already on a good way."
While the praise was lavished on Verstappen, he was over four tenths behind team-mate Daniel Ricciardo who delivered a stunning lap at the end of qualifying with his only flier in Q3.
"I don't know if Daniel was sandbagging or not, but if he was he was playing it pretty cool, but his last lap was mighty," added Horner.
"To be within six tenths of a Mercedes around here, four tenths off Rosberg is properly impressive."
However, the Red Bull boss has played down any expectations of his team taking the fight to Mercedes in the race.
"We are not going to get too carried away, it is about keeping the cars behind us on Sunday, but a great start to the weekend," Horner said.
Watch the Spanish GP live on Sky Sports F1. The race starts at 1pm on Sunday, with build-up underway at 11.30am. Or watch the race without a contract for £6.99 on NOW TV.
