Verstappen 'happy' with Honda shakedown

Max Verstappen says that he is happy with maiden run with the Honda engine, stating that it was an "important" run before winter testing.

Red Bull launched the RB15 on Wednesday, its first car powered by Honda. The Japanese manufacturer spent the 2018 season with its junior team Toro Rosso, in what was seen as an overall successful partnership.

Following the launch of the car, Red Bull conducted a shakedown at the Silverstone Circuit before it flies to Barcelona for pre-season testing, which kicks off on Monday, February 18. Verstappen was pleased with his outing, saying it was insightful to get a first impression.

“The car looks cool. The livery is very beautiful, even though it’s only for today. I was really excited to jump in the car and as soon as we got going it felt pretty normal. It felt good and we had no problems, so I’m very happy with that.

"Of course today is a filming day, so there’s a limited amount you can get out of it, but it’s really important to have a day like this, before you go to the official tests. You get a first impression and you see if there are any little issues with the car or engine.

"Luckily we didn’t have any and it’s very positive that we had this opportunity. Now we can go testing properly, we’ll see what we can get out of that and we’ll be able to understand the car and the engine a bit better. But so far, so good."

This season, Verstappen will be partnered with Pierre Gasly, who spent the 2018 campaign driving the Honda engine with Toro Rosso.