Max Verstappen says that he had an engine scare at the start of Q3 that threatened to derail his run to pole position in Abu Dhabi.
Verstappen says that his Red Bull Power Unit switched off unexpectedly as the team prepared the car for the opening runs in Q3.
After a reboot, there were no overhanging issues and Verstappen emerged onto the track, where he secured his seventh pole position of the 2022 campaign.
READ MORE: Verstappen takes seventh and final pole of 2022 in Abu Dhabi
“Yeah, Q3 was good,” said the two-time World Champion. “Before that it was all a bit up and down.
“But Q3, first run, even there it started a bit chaotic, where I was supposed to drive out in front of Checo but as soon as I wanted to start my engine, everything just turned off.
“So we had to reboot the car and then luckily I still managed to get out – a bit delayed – which is also not great with the tyres. But we still managed to keep everything under control and do a good lap. So I was happy with that.
Red Bull bounced back strongly from a difficult event last time out in Brazil, where it finished the race in fifth and sixth on top of a team order controversy.
While Red Bull applied measures to avoid a repeat of its Sao Paulo slump, Verstappen also hailed Red Bull reserve Liam Lawson, who drove Verstappen’s car during FP1 in Abu Dhabi.
“We knew that we had a quick car. I think we just made a few mistakes in Brazil, in hindsight,” Verstappen commented.
“But once we got here the work in the simulator paid off and immediately, I could see already in FP1 with Checo [Perez] feeling quite happy and also Liam [Lawson] in the car you could see him straight away on it.
“It means the car is in a good window, and then when I jumped in in FP2, it was just about fine-tuning a few things.”
READ MORE: Lawson takes fourth F2 victory of 2022 with Sprint Race triumph
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