Red Bull's blunder Down Under gives Ferrari fresh hope

MELBOURNE — Thousands of red-clad Ferrari fans descended on Lygon Street in Melbourne to party in the Italian restaurant strip until the wee hours of Monday after Carlos Sainz's unlikely win in the Australian Grand Prix.

The Italian Formula One team will hope the celebrations continue at Suzuka in two weeks' time after Albert Park breathed new life into the championship.

Sainz and teammate Charles Leclerc's 1-2 in Australia trimmed Red Bull's lead to four points in both the drivers' and constructors' title races, a major momentum shift following Max Verstappen's Middle East dominance.

Ferrari had the fortune of Verstappen flaming out with a brake problem at Albert Park which ended Red Bull's two-year run of avoiding DNFs (non-finishes) on race day.

Ferrari nonetheless leaves Melbourne delighted by the pace of its SF-24 car after being trounced by Red Bull in Saudi Arabia and Bahrain.

"This weekend is good evidence that when we are putting everything together, and I'm not sure that we'll be able to do it every single weekend, we can put (Red Bull) a little bit under pressure," said team boss Frederic Vasseur.

"It's when they are under pressure that they will also have more mistakes. We have to continue in this direction."

With triple world champion Verstappen topping the podium ahead of teammate Sergio Perez in the season's first two races, Red Bull was blindsided by setup struggles from the get-go in Melbourne.

Team boss Christian Horner said Red Bull had failed to get to grips with conditions while Ferrari, clearly, had.

"I think the nature of the surface (was a factor), as well. I think that the tire graining here in particular was something that Ferrari looked in control of," he said.

"Certainly from Friday their long runs looked good."

Perez, who finished fifth after the floor of his car was damaged, said Ferrari "absolutely" had the pace to beat Verstappen had the Dutchman gone the distance.

However, Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko was unconvinced.

"I spoke to Max and he said that, despite the problems, he kept up with Sainz's pace relatively easily," Marko told Sky Sports.

"With Max in the race, it would have turned out completely differently."

Ferrari may not know where it sits until its next proper duel against Verstappen, who won 19 out of 22 races last season and will be eager to hit back at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Mercedes, by contrast, can have little doubt of its place in the pecking order, with Melbourne confirming its also-ran status.

With no championship points at Albert Park and their first double DNF since 2018, the Silver Arrows have slumped to fourth in the championship, 71 points behind leading Red Bull.

The free-fall may continue as the British-based team battles to understand the unreliable performance of its overhauled W15 car.

"We haven't swallowed a dumb pill since 2021. It's just we don't understand some of the behaviors of the car," said team boss Toto Wolff.

Reuters