Starting from the back of the grid after a mistake in qualifying, Max Verstappen made a solid comeback to sixth place in Melbourne.
Read more George Russell responds to Norris’s criticism of the new F1 rules
The Australian weekend had started poorly for Max Verstappen, however. The Red Bull driver saw his qualifying end prematurely after a spin that sent him into the wall, forcing him to start from the back of the grid.
In the race, the four-time world champion nevertheless managed to limit the damage. Taking advantage of a good pace and a series of well-executed overtakes, he managed to climb back up to sixth place at the finish. His performance was also praised by the fans, who voted him “Driver of the Day”.
But this progression through the field also allowed the Dutchman to see how much the new cars can produce unusual situations on track.
Overtakes worthy of “Mario Kart”
According to Verstappen, differences in energy management make duels very unpredictable, especially in the midfield.
“It was chaos, it was going up and down all the time, he explains. You overtake someone on a straight and you can get overtaken right back after.”
These variations in performance from one part of the track to another sometimes gave the impression of a very atypical race.
“I obviously had more speed in the corners than the midfield cars, so they couldn’t attack me again afterwards. But some really strange things happened in the pack, a bit like in Mario Kart.”
Technical issues at the end of the race
Once out of traffic, however, Verstappen encountered other difficulties with his car. He explains that he suffered from irregular tire wear as well as braking problems.
Read more Charles Leclerc compares the start of his Ferrari to a «Mario Kart mushroom»
“At the beginning, I mainly tried to stay out of trouble, because we were clearly faster than the midfield cars. We just had to get through that group without any problems,” he says.
When the race stabilized, several faults appeared: “When I started driving alone, I had a lot of graining on the tires. I also had quite a few issues with the brakes, which were pulling to one side. The steering didn’t feel good either.”
The Red Bull driver also admits that the positive aspects remain limited in terms of feel: “Honestly, there aren’t many positive things, especially in terms of the feeling behind the wheel.”
An encouraging first test for the Red Bull engine
Despite these difficulties and a significant gap at the finish – nearly a minute behind winner George Russell – Verstappen prefers to focus on some encouraging elements.
This Grand Prix indeed marked Red Bull’s first official race with its own engine developed in-house.
“We are racing for the first time with our own engine, so we can’t complain, he emphasizes. I was able to overtake a lot of cars, which shows that there is power.”
The Dutchman acknowledges, however, that the team still needs to make progress to fight at the front.
“For now, we can’t really fight at the front. But it’s not just an engine problem. I think the car itself also needs to take a step forward.”
Read more Red Bull trapped by the new F1: Verstappen and Hadjar forced to start with an empty battery