Despite Red Bull's Melbourne setback against Ferrari, Dr. Helmut Marko is not worried about their performance. Carlos Sainz's victory at the Australian Grand Prix has left many wondering if Ferrari can consistently challenge Red Bull's supremacy in the races ahead.
Carlos Sainz acknowledges that his Ferrari "worked really well" in Melbourne, yet he recognizes there's still a significant performance gap with Red Bull. He mentioned, "It's going to be tough to keep it up there in every track until we bring an upgrade to close that gap that we saw in Bahrain and Jeddah."
The consensus among racing pundits is that Red Bull's difficulties in Melbourne might have been unique to the Albert Park circuit, exacerbated by Max Verstappen's unexpected retirement due to a mechanical issue, his first in two years. Andrea Stella from McLaren noted, "We looked at Max's tyres after qualifying and they looked pretty damaged," highlighting potential issues.
Despite Verstappen's early exit, Red Bull's senior F1 advisor, Dr. Helmut Marko, believes the performance of Sergio Perez in the second car points to a specific issue in Melbourne rather than a general flaw. "At some points we were two seconds slower than the leaders," he observed on Servus TV, adding, "The tyre pressure may have been too high or the wrong settings may have been selected. After all, Checo is not two seconds slower than the others."
Christian Horner, the team principal, suggests Perez's struggles might have been due to damage sustained in an on-track clash with Fernando Alonso. Nonetheless, Perez himself conceded that the car's pace was lacking from the outset, noting, "We had problems from the start and saw that Ferrari and McLaren were better," and attributing some of the difficulties to the track's unique asphalt which compromised their grip.
Perez speculated that even without his brake issue leading to a fire, Verstappen "for sure" would have found it challenging to beat Ferrari's Sainz. Marko, however, maintains a calm stance. "It's nothing special," he stated, humorously adding, "and I expect Max to dominate again in Japan. We did this for all the people who find it boring when Red Bull wins." He further shared, "Last year at Suzuka, Max was much faster than the competition, and we're going to have some updates there as well. But the first thing Max said to me when he got out of the car today was that he could have followed Carlos very easily without those problems."
Marko confidently asserted, "There is no panic from us," and expressed a certain relief. "At least we got rid of the endless questions about whether we can win everything this season. No more perfect statistics! But as long as we win the title, I personally don't attach much importance to anything else."
Fred Vasseur of Ferrari, meanwhile, remains cautious, suggesting Melbourne's results don't necessarily prove Ferrari has bridged the gap to Red Bull. He admitted, "I don't have a crystal ball. We were in pretty good shape. I don't know if Max's first lap was representative either, so let's just enjoy what we've achieved now. There will be more fights with Max."
