Red Bull senior figure explains what happened to Max Verstappen’s car in FP1

Helmut Marko has unraveled the story behind Max Verstappen's RB20, which came to a halt during the FP1 session of the Austrian Grand Prix. Marko revealed that an oil pressure issue forced Verstappen to stop in the middle of the Red Bull Ring.

Verstappen had an eventful Friday in Austria, where he faced a sudden technical issue with his RB20 initially. However, he overcame the hurdle to claim the pole position later in the day. With this, the Dutchman has claimed back-to-back Sprint pole positions this season and the eighth Sprint pole of his career.

The Dutch driver kept the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri at bay to clock 1:04.686 on the timesheet. His teammate Sergio Perez qualified in P7. However, prior to this, Max Verstappen had to encounter a technical fault in FP1.

"In the first practice session, Max went straight on in Turn 1 and unfortunately went over those bumps with almost all four wheels, which knocked out a sensor that indicates oil pressure," Helmut Marko said to Motorsport-Total.

"So theoretically, there was no oil pressure. As a result, you have to be cautious to possibly save the engine. But then we were incredibly lucky that it happened exactly there at the front. Because of that, he was able to roll back, they could push him out, we deactivated the sensor, and then we could continue," he added.

Luckily, Verstappen did not have a terminal issue with his engine, otherwise, he would have needed to opt for a new engine ahead of the Austrian GP race and that would have cost him a hefty grid penalty. The 26-year-old exhausted his last free engine replacement in Spain last weekend.

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Max Verstappen faces the McLaren challenge on Saturday

Pole position qualifier Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB20 stops in parc ferme during Sprint Qualifying ahead of the F1 Grand Prix of Austria at Red Bull Ring on June 28, 2024 in Spielberg, Austria. (Photo by Mark Thompson/Getty Images)

While Max Verstappen snatched the Sprint pole position from Lando Norris on Friday by nine-hundredth of a second, the danger is far from gone. With the improved McLaren MCL38, Norris is performing at his peak and ready to challenge Verstappen.

Seeking redemption after his defeat to Verstappen last weekend, the British driver will be looking to use all his race craft to keep the three-time world champion at bay. Besides him, Oscar Piastri would also want to use the slipstream and take a giant leap like George Russell did in Spain.

Piastri is back in the top three after having a dismal qualifying session in Barcelona. Apart from the race, the eyes would also be on the main race qualifying later in the day. All in all, fans can expect some feisty moves at the 2024 Austrian Grand Prix tomorrow.