The opening of the Formula 1 season was a huge anticlimax for Max Verstappen. “And yet the problems at Mercedes, for example, are greater than at Red Bull,” says L1’s Formula 1 analyst Xavier Maassen.
Verstappen had to capitulate a few laps before the end of the Bahrain Grand Prix, probably due to a problem with the fuel pump.
18 points lost
The Limburg leader of the Red Bull team drove almost the entire race in the footsteps of Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc. A safety car seemed to give Verstappen the ultimate chance for the stage win in the final, but instead the Red Bull’s ability and the prospect of a podium place disappeared like snow in the sun. “A second place would have been an excellent result given the circumstances,” said Verstappen. “I’m now losing 18 points and that’s disappointing because you know it can be very exciting at the end of the championship.”
Also read: Max Verstappen drops out in the opening race in extremis
Conflict
“It came completely unexpectedly,” said Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who had “never seen these problems before”. “Obviously we’re going to strip that car and find out what was going on.” He was pleased with the speed of the car. “It is encouraging that we have a car that can compete. We were on the front row and saw a nice fight between Max and Charles, but we also have to note that Ferrari is just a bit faster.”
“The problems at Mercedes are bigger”
“Actually, there was only one car that did better today: Charles Leclerc in the Ferrari”, Maassen also thought. “They were in a good position and if the problem hadn’t become so big, Max would have had a good season opening with second place. Yes, there are problems, but those problems are a lot smaller than with Mercedes, for example, even if Hamilton third. Mercedes lost a second per lap to Red Bull and Ferrari.”
Balance, brakes, tactics
Nevertheless, Verstappen himself thought that there was quite a bit to criticize about his race and the RB18. “My speed was okay, but not as good as I had hoped. I didn’t have the right balance in the car. It was very difficult to drive. And if I wanted to accelerate a little, the brakes immediately got too hot. also that we could have done better tactically. I would have liked to drive much more aggressively after the pit stops. Then I could have taken the lead.”
Problematic
Shortly after Verstappen gave up the fight, teammate Sergio Perez also had to give up, apparently with similar problems. And because Pierre Gasly of sister team AlphaTauri had already retired, the total number of Honda-powered cars that did not make it to the finish line came to three. “That is problematic,” concludes Maassen. “It is important to analyze it well, because next week they should be good again.” After all, the GP of Saudi Arabia is on the roll.
‘Coming back stronger’
That message is also preached by Horner. “We are losing expensive points. It is important that we quickly find out what is wrong so that we can come back even stronger in Saudi Arabia next week.”