Verstappen unfazed by F1 FP2 shunt at Spa after “very positive” Friday

Verstappen ended FP2 fastest ahead of the Mercedes pair of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton, with less than a tenth separating the lead trio.

The Dutchman lost control of his Red Bull on the exit of Les Combes, spearing rearwards into the barrier.

Verstappen’s crash caused the second red flag of the session, ensuring that second practice came to a premature end.

Reflecting on his crash, Verstappen said after practice: “I don't know, I just lost the rear. A bit too much oversteer to correct and unfortunately, I hit the wall.”

He was consistently at the top of the timesheets throughout the day’s running at Spa, leaving him confident of taking the fight to Mercedes.

“Yeah, it was good,” Verstappen explained. “I think the whole day we were quite happy. Of course, a few things to fine-tune from FP1 to FP2. Overall, we are very happy. I think, definitely, a very positive start.

“I didn't change anything on my car with the wind. I felt happy with what I had but of course, a few things to take into consideration with the weather as well.”

With wet weather expected intermittently throughout the remainder of the weekend, Verstappen is sure it’s going to make for an “interesting” grand prix.

“Difficult to say in the wet because so far we've not driven it yet but I think every day will be a bit like it was today. Definitely, it will be quite interesting,” he added.