Max Verstappen faces a challenging battle to secure his third straight victory of 2024, conceding before qualifying that "Ferrari is certainly fast".
"We can still fine-tune a few things," stated the triple world champion in Melbourne. "I don't see a reason to worry yet," he had said a day earlier on Friday, reflecting optimism about Red Bull's chances.
Dr. Helmut Marko, the team advisor, concurred, stating, "We have to take Ferrari seriously here. They look extremely strong on one lap and in the long run."
He further noted, "We drove with less power than Ferrari on the fast lap. And the long run still needs fine-tuning. But they're strong here. (Charles) Leclerc is fast."
"Max also damaged the underbody and a few other things relatively badly in the first session, which meant we had less time in the second one."
"We were a little bit behind in the long run, but this is due to the lack of time. But it will be tight, especially if we don't get the tuning under control."
"But I'm optimistic that we will succeed," Marko concluded optimistically.
