Max Verstappen arrived at the 2026 Australian GP insisting he still can’t predict a clear outcome for Red Bull’s first weekend of the new F1 regulation era, even after an encouraging pre-season that left him “positively surprised” by how the car and Ford-backed power unit package worked together.
On his expectations ahead of the first race
Speaking on Thursday in Melbourne ahead of the season opener, Verstappen expressed satisfaction with the team’s pre-season prep efforts, but couldn’t definitively say whether a podium or a win could be on the cards at Albert Park, stressing that testing only offered limited clues about the pecking order.
“I have no idea,” he admitted when asked about his expectations.
“I’m very happy with what we did in pre-season. It’s been a really great and proud moment for everyone. The whole project came together between the engine and the car. I was really positively surprised with how basically everything felt also. The rule changes have been really complex I think for everyone, but in terms of the feeling in the car, driving experience between the engine and the car, it was good.
“Of course I’ve had my say on the other things that I didn’t like, but what happened here within the team has been really, really good. So we are very happy with that. Now, of course looking on the performance side of things, I think we want to be a little bit faster and actually I think everyone always wants to be faster.”
Despite a handful of rivals naming Red Bull as one to watch following a productive and generally trouble-free pre-season, Verstappen was keen to avoid getting pulled into direct comparisons with the other leading teams.
“From the things that I think we learned in Bahrain, at least we were not the quickest,” he said. “But yeah, I have no idea. We’ll just see where we are here to start with.”
Verstappen’s latest teammate, Isack Hadjar, also admitted feeling optimistic, even going as far as saying he will be aiming for a podium finish at the 2026 Australian GP, barring any technical disasters.
Red Bull-Ford power unit mileage a “positive surprise”
With the 2026 regulations shifting the focus to power unit development in a major way, Red Bull was one of the biggest unknowns, having switched from Honda—with whom they had enjoyed a long and fruitful partnership—to producing engines in-house with help from returning marque Ford. Red Bull and sister team Racing Bulls put the power unit through its paces during two rounds of pre-season testing in Bahrain, completing a combined 1,417 laps across six days in the desert. So far, the engine appears to be generally reliable; an encouraging sign for the fledgling project.
Asked if he had ever felt sceptical about the decision to move production in-house, Verstappen pointed to the progress made through building the right group of people and delivering strong mileage through testing.
“I think everyone was probably positively surprised with the amount of laps that we were doing, but you have to be also confident in the people being there, right, that are developing the power unit, and I think over time, you collect all the good individuals and you make them work together as a team, and that has been… yeah, really outstanding.
“It’s just fun for me, of course, to be from the outside in that sense, to see, but it’s always very hard to see the two, but so far it’s been really good, pretty nice.
“Potential-wise, I mean, it can always be better, right? That’s the mentality, that’s the focus, that’s what we are working on, and—I don’t know, of course, where the ceiling is.”
Verstappen expects a steep early learning curve in 2026
One of the key talking points during testing was the technical complexity of the 2026 F1 cars and the significance energy management will have in this new era. Red Bull appeared sharp early in both tests, prompting questions about whether execution and understanding could outweigh any raw pace deficit at the start of the season.
“Depends how big the deficit is, right?” Verstappen pointed out.
He believes Red Bull has begun the season with a strong baseline, but remained cautious about claiming the team has found the best solutions.
“I don’t know,” he continued. “Like I said, we’ve done a good job. I think we’re doing the right thing, but is it the best thing? At the moment, we don’t know as well.”
He added that expects the first races to expose vulnerabilities and problems across the grid: “I think there’s still a big learning curve for everyone as well, especially in the first few races.
“There will always be things that you come across in critical moments that maybe you didn’t expect to happen, but we tried to cover as many things as we could. So from that sense, I think we did a good job so far, but the rest is all a bit unclear still.”
Red Bull feels “like a second family”
This will be Laurent Mekies’ first full season at the helm following his mid-season promotion last year, succeeding long-time Red Bull boss Christian Horner.
Asked if the 2026 Australian GP feels like the beginning of a new era, Verstappen said such change is normal in the sport, but admitted the shift has had a positive impact.
“Teams… they go through changes in general,” he said, adding that the soft reset at Red Bull—triggered by the departure of senior figures like Horner and advisor Helmut Marko, as well as the new technical partnership with Ford—has been “refreshing, maybe needed.”
Verstappen reiterated his connection with the team, praising the positive, productive atmosphere.
“It’s been nice, honestly, working with everyone, but it’s always been nice for me to be in this team. It’s really like a second family, so yeah, that’s why I’m also very happy to be here.”
