Bad news for Ferrari as Max Verstappen's Red Bull placed as the second-fastest by paddock veteran

Max Verstappen's Red Bull has been named as the second fastest car ahead of both Ferrari and Mercedes by Helmut Marko. The pre-season test for the Austrian team was not the best, as both the driver and senior personnel were not too happy with how the car had responded on track.

Even in the recent interview with Viaplay, Max Verstappen was not too keen on where Red Bull could finish when questioned about the team's prospects ahead of the season. So much so that the driver has claimed that he didn't expect to be in a position where he's fighting for the win in Australia.

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, however, has shared a somewhat positive outlook on where the car is and feels that the team could have the second fastest car on the grid ahead of both Ferrari and Mercedes. He told AMuS,

"In our estimation, we're ahead of both, both on a single lap and in the long runs. Mercedes, for example, has been notable for its significant tire wear."

Talking about how Red Bull is performing after the test, Marko said,

"The new car is more predictable, reacts to setup changes as expected, and not like last year, where there was an immediate one-second drop if you fell outside the working window. But it still has weaknesses that we need to work on over the course of the season. There is noticeable progress, but not to the extent that we would be on the same level as McLaren."

The 2024 F1 season was a strange one for Red Bull, where the team started the season positively, but everything went haywire midway through the season. Things would come back on track to a certain extent by the end of the season as Max Verstappen would win the race in Brazil and Qatar, although the car was still apparently a step behind both McLaren and Ferrari.

McLaren ahead of Max Verstappen's Red Bull

Helmut Marko did, however, confess that McLaren still had the fastest car on the grid. The Austrian did, however, point out that the gap was not as big as many feared, and hence Max Verstappen could be in contention. Talking about the Woking-based team, he said,

"McLaren currently has the fastest car and is also incredibly strong in terms of tire wear. But I don't think the gap is as large as it sometimes appeared. For example, we didn't run our race simulation in the optimal configuration. It's still the same as last year. McLaren goes out on track and immediately sets good times, with every tire compound."

The first race of the season would answer a lot of questions, most of all, it would give an idea about whether Max Verstappen could potentially challenge for the title this season.