After Max Verstappen Doesn’t Turn up P1 on Thursday, Zak Brown Believes Red Bull Is Yet to Flaunt Their Absolute Strength

The 2024 F1 season officially kicked off on Thursday with FP1 and FP2 running at the Bahrain Grand Prix. From the get-go, this season has given the fans, the media, and the paddock a lot to talk about. For starters, three-time world champion Max Verstappen failed to turn in the fastest lap in either of the sessions. Moreover, during the more representative FP2 session, under the lights, the Dutchman could only register P6 with his RB20. However, McLaren boss Zak Brown isn’t ready to accept that Red Bull’s dominant streak has ended just yet.

While the 26-year-old reportedly struggled with rear-end grip and downshifts, Brown believes that his rivals are still sandbagging. Brown was quoted on X (formerly Twitter) as saying, “I don’t think Red Bull and Ferrari have turned their engines up yet. Let’s see how it goes.”

On the flip side, Brown was all praise for his power unit suppliers. He praised Mercedes for looking really strong after going through the data the team had collected.

And the timings do seem to suggest that Brown has a point. As the chequered flag came out for FP2, the Silver Arrows secured a 1-2 finish with Lewis Hamilton clocking in the fastest time of 1.30.374 on the soft.

Meanwhile, his teammate, George Russell, was just two-tenths behind. While it seems that Mercedes have the advantage at this point, Brown’s apprehensions might still come true. Red Bull could unleash the extent of their performance during the all-important first qualifying session of the 2024 Formula 1 season on Friday.

Have Red Bull overplayed their hand in 2024?

During pre-season testing and even the first practice session, Ferrari looked like a solid contender to be close to Red Bull. However, even they have been playing it coy with engine modes and fuel loads, according to Zak Brown.

But if Red Bull have really not aced their 2024 car, then the sport can be in for a fantastic season of Grand Prix racing. At one point in time during FP2, P1 to P14 were separated by less than a second.

And if that’s how close the grid is, it could provide some iconic races and a tight championship fight this year. As for Red Bull, one reason they might be struggling is because of their gamble to choose the zero sid pod design for their car.