Following the Formula 1 shakedown event in Barcelona, Max Verstappen commented that his new Red Bull Ford Powertrain still requires “a fair amount of development.”
This week, F1 conducted a confidential five-day trial in Barcelona, affording each of the 11 competing teams up to three days on track in anticipation of the upcoming season’s comprehensive regulatory overhaul.
Beyond the introduction of a fresh set of rules, Red Bull, supported by Ford, is set to launch its inaugural venture as a power unit provider, marking a significant endeavor two decades after the team’s entry into F1.
Consequently, the team is not considered a frontrunner for the 2026 season, even with the presence of four-time champion and previous year’s second-place finisher Verstappen, who only managed substantial track time in Barcelona by Friday.
This situation arose as Red Bull allocated the entirety of Monday’s running to his new colleague, Isack Hadjar, while Verstappen’s subsequent turn on Tuesday morning was met with inconsistent weather, thereby restricting his time on the circuit.
Later that day, Hadjar was involved in a crash, leading to the Austrian squad’s absence until the concluding day, when Verstappen successfully completed an estimated 118 laps, concluding a commendable, though imperfect, week.
“It remains an ongoing development, yet I believe we’ve initiated these processes effectively,” Verstappen conveyed to F1. “The formula continues to be highly intricate for all participants; considerable effort is still required, but this is to be expected.”
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Formula 1
Presently, Mercedes appears to be a formidable contender, having logged the highest number of laps this week, with their young second-year driver Andrea Kimi Antonelli even executing a complete race simulation on Wednesday.
Mercedes is currently tipped to win this year’s constructors’ championship, partly due to their overwhelming performance during the previous engine regulation shift in 2014, with their key driver George Russell being the frontrunner for the individual drivers’ title.
By Thursday, the Silver Arrows had finished their entire testing schedule, and Russell exuded assurance, having also recorded the week’s second-quickest lap time, trailing only Lewis Hamilton of Ferrari.
Russell remarked, “I consider it a highly encouraging test. We accumulated significant mileage with the vehicle, which was the primary objective of this trial. The car feels pleasant to operate, without significant problems or instances of porpoising, which is excellent news for everyone involved. This will spare us considerable strain. Therefore, overall, it was a satisfactory few days.”
For Mercedes, this represents a welcome shift, given that their eight-year reign concluded with the debut of ground-effect vehicles in 2022, leaving them without a championship since. Little importance should be attached to this week’s initial run-out, as the focus was primarily on accumulating distance rather than raw pace, and Russell is clearly maintaining a measured perspective.
The British driver further noted, “Regarding the power unit aspect, some of our rivals have demonstrated rather remarkable capabilities, which I find quite astonishing, frankly.”
“Therefore, commendations to them. However, with merely three days elapsed in a 24-race calendar, it’s advisable not to draw extensive conclusions from this. Nonetheless, many observers expected the fresh power unit providers to face challenges and such, yet they also seem to have conducted a successful test. That bodes well for them. As for our team, only time will reveal the full picture.”
