Plooij thinks Red Bull and Verstappen are going to test: "That's gonna happen"
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- GPblog.com
In all likelihood, Red Bull Racing will not be able to test prior to the Austrian Grand Prix. A car at least two years old has to be driven and at the time the team of Max Verstappen was still driving Renault engines. Today, however, Red Bull drives Honda engines and they don't fit in the old cars.
Renault doesn't seem very eager to deliver an older engine to Red Bull, so there won't be any kilometres to be driven by Verstappen or Alexander Albon in the coming weeks.
Plooij expects it to be alright
At least, that's the expectation. Journalist Jack Plooij tells the Dutch Ziggo Sport that he thinks there will be a solution. "That's possible, isn't it? We still have time, don't we? We can go for another test somewhere. I think Red Bull will test. That's gonna happen."
Former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos doesn't see the situation as so rosy. "The separation between Red Bull and Renault wasn't very smooth," the analyst says. "If you now call Renault and ask them if they can supply an engine from France to England, you also have to deal with the import. You have the quarantine regulations in Great Britain. So it's not really possible to do that."
Verstappen clever
Verstappen was also confronted with the situation by the press last week, but according to Doornbos, the 21-year-old Limburger has very cleverly answered those questions. "Max got away with it well by saying that he doesn't need that testing. He just didn't go into it."
Former F1 driver Giedo van der Garde responds to the conversation by saying that Mercedes has been wise to test at Silverstone, although he also says that a lot of testing can also take place in the factory. "Such a team also has to get used to such a new procedure (because of the corona measures). What Mercedes does, I think, is just very smart. But you also have to remember that those guys keep on practicing pit stops in the factory. They have to be quick too. They're really busy doing some things there, because otherwise you won't stay fit and sharp."