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Max Verstappen from Red Bull Racing RB20 made his exit from the starting grid at the Australian Grand Prix. Verstappen’s teammate, Sergio Perez, believes that Ferrari would not have won the race if Verstappen had not retired. Verstappen started from pole position but had to end his race after four laps due to an issue with his right rear brake. Verstappen mentioned that the brake problem was present from the start, allowing Carlos Sainz to catch up and overtake him with the help of DRS on the second lap. Sainz went on to dominate the race and secure a one-two finish for Ferrari. Perez is certain that not even Verstappen could have stopped Ferrari from winning. When asked about Ferrari’s chances without Verstappen’s retirement, Perez replied: “For sure. I think as a team, we simply didn’t have the speed today. We struggled throughout the whole weekend. We were already facing difficulties since Friday and we couldn’t find a solution to manage the tires.” Perez qualified in third place but was penalized for obstructing Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas, making it difficult for him to improve his position during the race. He finished in fifth place. Perez acknowledged that the degradation of the RB20 car was a problem, especially on a track like Albert Park Circuit, which is front limited. He said: “We were struggling from the beginning, and it was clear that Ferrari and McLaren were ahead of us. We couldn’t find the right balance, and there is work to be done for the upcoming races. Last year, we saw that Ferrari was much stronger than us on a front limited track like Las Vegas, so we couldn’t take care of the front tires.” In addition to his grid penalty, Perez’s attempt to catch Verstappen was hindered when George Russell overtook him on the first lap. This delay in overtaking Russell caused Perez to lose valuable ground to the leaders, making it difficult for him to close the gap with the McLaren drivers ahead. Perez reflected on the race, saying: “The race would have been different if we hadn’t been stuck behind Russell in the first stint. Losing the position to him was very detrimental, and overall, it was a very disappointing weekend. We have a lot to analyze and understand.” After the race, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner revealed that a piece of plastic got stuck under Perez’s floor after he passed Fernando Alonso.
