The fear across the paddock appears to be running high. All the predictions and evaluations have come true in one way or another, and some have turned out false as well. After Red Bull’s triumph in 2022, everyone expected them to rule the circuits this year as well, but with a lesser margin. While the qualification has proven that the margins are smaller, they are bound to increase at the front of the grid. The Milton-Keynes-based outfit’s dominance seems inevitable after we witnessed the Red Bull juggernaut comfortably edge out the cars from the other garages.

Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez were the only two drivers who went beyond the 1:30:000 mark in Bahrain. The other teams seemed to have given their all. However, Red Bull appeared not to be firing on all cylinders. Saturday’s session hinted at a multi-side battle. Yet, Red Bull just might run away with the championship, as others are bound to fade away when confronted with the level of upgrades that might come soon.

Teams across the paddock are scratching their heads to figure out how to confront the Red Bulls. Ferrari is testing an entirely different strategy, and Mercedes is going back to the drawing board. Aston Martin, on the other hand, may not be able to match all the hype and attention, despite playing it underhand earlier.

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Collectively, all of their fears have come true. Despite the fact that most of them underwent major changes to adapt better to the regulations and challenges. All of this is because, as he did in the last F1 season, Max Verstappen is off to a strong start this time around. He issued the challenge, and no one rose to the occasion during the qualification in Bahrain.

Max Verstappen is delighted with the car and the team

Last year, Verstappen lost out on the pole to the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. This year, many contenders emerged to keep the pole away from him, including Fernando Alonso. But by proving the car’s mettle, Mad Max has set up a great start for himself on Sunday.

Talking about the car, as quoted by Formula 1, Max expressed his delight by saying, “So yeah, I’m very, very happy. Then in Q3 we put these laps in. I still think it’s not perfect but in a better direction. So for sure for the next race we will have to analyze a bit why from the test to the race it’s so difficult for us. Also, for me driving-wise. But nevertheless, we are sitting here with two cars. So coming off last year, I think this is again a very strong start for us. So, very happy with that.”

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Many teams perhaps thought of Red Bull’s challenge to be easier than it has proven to be. Ferrari and Mercedes have come closer to each other than they have to Red Bull, despite all the optimism and hope.