(Motorsport-Total.com) – The Formula 1 season opener in Australia has shown: Red Bull belongs to the extended top group, but is currently not at the level of Mercedes and Ferrari. Max Verstappen drove from 20th on the grid to 6th place after his qualifying crash on Saturday. But despite the strong recovery, the realization remains: the pace is currently not enough for the very front.
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The four-time world champion assesses his team’s current situation soberly: “In the end, it doesn’t really matter whether you’re the third-fastest or fourth-fastest team,” says Verstappen. “We want to get to the very front. At the moment, there’s still a decent gap.”
That’s why Red Bull must catch up step by step throughout the season. “I hope, of course, that we can close this gap over the course of the season.”
Recovery after a difficult weekend
The weekend in Melbourne was turbulent for Red Bull anyway. Verstappen started from only 20th on the grid after an accident in qualifying. In the race, however, he worked his way through the field and was able to salvage at least a few points.
Teammate Isack Hadjar, on the other hand, had significantly less luck. His race ended early due to technical problems. “I had temperature problems, no battery and the engine sounded terrible,” says Hadjar. “I knew it would explode at some point.”
Verstappen sees the causes for the deficit in both the car and the power unit: “I think our pace problem is about half car, half engine,” he explains. However, he does not assess this situation as dramatic. “These are things that can be improved. It’s nothing shocking.”
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Despite his fundamental criticism of the new regulations, the Dutchman praises the team’s work: “The guys have done an incredible job to get us to where we are now,” says Verstappen. “I am very proud of the team.”
Red Bull confirms its own prognosis
Team principal Laurent Mekies also sees his assessment confirmed by the start of the season. Even after the winter tests, Red Bull expected to be about the fourth force. “I think that was pretty accurate,” says Mekies. In qualifying, Hadjar was able to surprise with 3rd place on the grid, but in the race, the car’s real pace was revealed.
“We were probably on par with McLaren,” Mekies explains. However, they had no chance against Ferrari and Mercedes. Despite the deficit, Red Bull still sees development potential. Both the chassis and the engine, the current package is still far from an optimal setup.
“I think we can still find a lot of performance without changing the hardware,” says Mekies.
Verstappen sees it similarly. With further progress, Red Bull could move closer to the top again over the course of the season. “If we improve a little bit, we can also fight further forward,” he says. “Then the world looks a bit better again.”
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