Verstappen: I expect to gain about a second a lap with Ferrari

Max Verstappen has marked the end of his New Year holiday by predicting a big power boost for Toro Rosso this year from the Ferrari power units to be bolted on to the back of his Toro Rosso on 2016.

"I'm back in Monaco to train," the 18-year-old told his website verstappen.nl, "and next week I'm off to Austria for more training."

While Toro Rosso's big brother Red Bull is staying with Renault power units for 2016, the junior outfit has secured a supply of 2015-spec Ferrari V6s.

"Things are looking good," Verstappen said. "Of course you always aim to improve the car but the first signs do look promising. The (2015 car) STR10 was already very good in fast corners, so I'm looking forward what this year's car brings."

"The Ferrari engine is probably the biggest step," he added. "I'm expecting a lot from it. A big gain on the engine front makes everything a lot easier."

"I expect to gain about a second a lap because of engine performance alone, which is a lot. So I think we can make bigger steps than our close rivals," said Verstappen.

The Dutch teenager was the sensation of the 2015 season, the most impressive rookie in most books. So much so that he attracted the interest of the big F1 teams.

In 2016 he will again partner hghly rated Carlos Sainz in the Faenza based team.