Red Bull arrived at the Spielberg circuit hoping a new RB22 upgrade would close the gap to front‑runner Kimi Antonelli. Max Verstappen recorded fourth‑place finishes in both Friday sessions, trailing the Italian by over half a second. On‑track, the Dutch champion flagged a sudden loss of revs in Turn 3, describing the problem as “hit‑and‑miss.”

Technical director Pierre Wache traced the issue to engine management, noting that the extensive package – revised floor, sidepods and weight reduction – altered the car’s balance. Both drivers reported unpredictable rear‑end grip, forcing them to guess traction before the engine could recover, which produced wheel‑spin on exit. The team must resolve the power‑unit quirk before qualifying.

Despite the setbacks, Wache believes the upgrade improves overall downforce and weight distribution. Team principal Laurent Mekies aims to halve the deficit to two‑tenths of a second, while teammate Arvid Hadjar said the car felt “much easier to drive” in FP2. The remaining work will focus on fine‑tuning set‑up to extract the package’s full potential for the Austrian Grand Prix.