Max Verstappen, representing Red Bull Racing team, was unable to determine if his concerns about race pace had been addressed due to his retirement from the Australian Grand Prix. Despite his strong performance in the early races of the 2024 season, with Verstappen securing consecutive 1-2 finishes in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, the team seemed to be behind Ferrari during practice at Albert Park. However, some minor adjustments to Verstappen’s RB20 resulted in him clinching pole position. Unfortunately, his hopes of securing a record-breaking 10th consecutive win were dashed when a problem with the right rear brake forced him to retire on the fourth lap. Meanwhile, Sergio Perez, who had been penalized with a three-place grid drop for impeding another driver, faced additional challenges when a piece of Fernando Alonso’s visor got stuck under the floor of his car. Red Bull team principal Christian Horner expressed optimism about the team’s race performance after implementing fixes to address their issues. However, the retirement prevented them from getting the answers they were seeking. Horner acknowledged Ferrari’s impressive performance throughout the weekend and congratulated Carlos Sainz on his dominant victory, despite undergoing an appendix operation. The early exit from the race was undoubtedly frustrating for Max Verstappen and the team.
Perez argued that even if Verstappen had participated in the race, Ferrari would still have emerged victorious as their SF-24 car was superior.
Horner responded: “We can’t speculate on what could have happened. Verstappen mentioned that the car felt good during his laps to the grid and he quickly gained a second on the first lap against Carlos. However, the Ferraris were fast this weekend and they deserve their win. Carlos also drove exceptionally well.”
Horner also rejected the idea that Red Bull had sacrificed long-term performance for a better qualifying position, considering concerns about tire degradation.
“I don’t believe that. We were able to identify some issues during qualifying, and it’s a shame we didn’t get to see how it would have been. Carlos, in particular, was impressive during the middle stint. It all comes down to keeping good tire conditions when you have such an advantage.”
Ferrari’s 1-2 victory, combined with the fastest lap, earned them a maximum of 44 points, bringing them within just four points of Red Bull, who got 10 points with Perez’s fifth place.
When asked if he saw the Constructors’ Championship as a battle between Red Bull and Ferrari, Horner replied: “Ferrari is a strong team with two talented drivers and a decent car. We had a tough day today, and they capitalized on it, so now everything is closer. However, there are still 21 races to go.”
