Red Bull emerged victorious in 21 out of 22 races in 2023 and are the clear frontrunners, with Verstappen in pursuit of his fourth consecutive championship. The team, based in Milton Keynes and celebrating their 20th anniversary this year, have also secured victory in 38 out of the last 44 grand prix events.
Verstappen set the fastest lap time on the first day of testing, but Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz took the top spot on Thursday. However, it’s important to note that teams are conducting their own test programs using different fuel levels and settings.
Echoing the sentiments of most other Formula 1 drivers, Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion from Mercedes, expressed to reporters on the final day of pre-season testing that Red Bull is clearly ahead of the competition.
“I am fully committed to finishing strong with this team and have complete confidence in the team’s efforts. We will do our best to narrow the gap to Red Bull,” Hamilton added, referring to his final year with Mercedes before his move to Ferrari.
That being said, others acknowledged that they still have ground to make up. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc shared with reporters that his initial impression is that his car is much more manageable compared to last year’s model, but “Red Bull unfortunately remains significantly ahead.”
Mercedes driver George Russell echoed this sentiment, stating, “Red Bull is the favorite and definitely has an advantage over everyone else. This was to be expected.”
Lando Norris from McLaren expressed a similar view, saying, “I believe we are in a favorable position. We had a decent car towards the end of last season. We have certainly made progress in the right direction, but we still have a considerable gap to bridge with Red Bull and Ferrari.”
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella informed journalists in Bahrain that there is one vehicle that seems to have made significant progress. Unfortunately, it is the same vehicle that was already the fastest last year.
Mercedes finished in second place overall last season, trailing Red Bull by a massive 451 points, with Ferrari coming in a close third and McLaren in fourth.
Verstappen, who achieved a record-breaking 19 victories last year, with teammate Sergio Perez winning two, stated on Friday that the RB20 performed as expected. He expressed that he couldn’t have asked for more and perhaps even wished for less.
The Dutch driver reported that he completed numerous laps without any issues, and the car’s balance was excellent. He acknowledged that the current car is an improvement over last year’s model, but believes that every team on the grid has made progress.
Despite this, Red Bull set the standard for the 2024 F1 season with the RB20. Even Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur, whose cars stole the spotlight during testing, acknowledged that Red Bull is ahead.
Simultaneously, on the final day of testing, Red Bull seemingly chose to save their best performance for qualifying for the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix. They have nowhere to hide and must deliver.
(Reported by Alan Baldwin; Additional reporting by GP247)