Car inspections, a gearbox changes, and a fire all cut into Max Verstappen’s lap times during the opening day of practise in Miami.

For the rest of the Miami Grand Prix weekend, Red Bull has performed a precautionary gearbox replacement on Max Verstappen’s car.

After a collision with the barrier in FP1, Red Bull decided to replace out the Dutchman’s gearbox for FP2, leaving him locked in the garage for the first half of the session.

Verstappen will not be penalised because the alteration is within the season’s four-change limit.

“There was no damage we could see, but you don’t want to take the risk and then be sat on the side for the whole session,” Horner said.

“We decided it was better to sacrifice a bit of time and we got lucky with the red flag (for Carlos Sainz’s crash).”

Gearbox changed, only for more issues follow

Verstappen halted again right after leaving the garages at the halfway point of FP2, his rear-right brake starting to burst into flames.

“I can’t do anything, I’m really sorry,” Verstappen reported over the radio as he crawled back to the pits, unable to steer his car properly.

Lance Stroll was almost caught off guard by the slow-moving Red Bull and had to bolt off the circuit to avoid contact, prompting the Aston Martin racer to send a threatening radio communication.

The stewards took note of the occurrence and chose not to take any further action.

Horner recalls Verstappen’s “dreadful” day

Horner later stated that Verstappen’s recent problems were caused by a hydraulics issue.

Verstappen finished third in the first practise session, but could not complete a lap in the second.

“He’s had a horrible day,” Horner summed up after the first two hours of practice.

“He’s driven out of the pit lane and had a hydraulic issue, which has unfortunately caused some damage to the rear brakes.

“He got a few laps in. I think he’s had five timed laps today, which were all competitive.

“Thankfully, with the red flags, he’s not lost too much, but it’s frustrating not to have that track time.”

Below are some of the most well-known FORMULA 1 drivers’ apparels, all of which are available at reasonable costs. Visit our link now if you are interested in the racing clothing collection:

F1, F1 2022, Formula 1, Grand Prix, Max Verstappen, Red Bull