Max Verstappen has complained that Red Bull had 'too much tyre degradation' during Sunday's Australian Grand Prix, having finished sixth in the standings.
The Dutchman produced an impressive performance given his issues in qualifying as George Russell secured glory in the season-opener at Albert Park.
Many fans will be impressed by how Verstappen performed, having started the main event at 20th on the grid following a crash in qualifying on Saturday.
However, the four-time world champion has admitted he was unhappy and that there was plenty of work to do behind the scenes in order to reach the heights of old.
"No, not really," he said when asked if he enjoyed the race.
"The overtakes were fun but I'm also racing cars that are two seconds slower.
"For me, it's just clearing the traffic. It sounds a bit weird but that's how I see it.
Mercedes are off to an impressive start! 😮💨
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 8, 2026
This how our Drivers' Standings look... ⬇️#F1 #AusGP pic.twitter.com/CbUP3fBPHo
"It's not really a fair fight, so I just try to get through as clean as possible and try to get into my rhythm when I clear the midfield.
"But we had too much degradation. We were graining a lot on the tyres. That compromised a lot with the rest of the race.
"We thought with the hard compound it would be better for us. But unfortunately that compound didn't work today."
LATEST SPORTS NEWS:
F1 facts fans might not know | GETTY/GBNEWSVerstappen also admitted that Mercedes look like the team to beat, with Russell and Kimi Antonelli managing a one-two finish.
The Red Bull driver continued: "Mercedes will be quick everywhere. With McLaren I don't know. In Bahrain [Testing] they were faster. It's very hard to say. We need to see track by track.
"In the end, it doesn't matter if you are third or fourth fastest. We are aiming for the top.
"We just try to work to that steadily. I hope throughout the season we can close that gap because at the moment it's still a decent gap."
While it was a frustrating day for Verstappen, it was a race to remember for Russell.
The 28-year-old is widely expected to compete for the championship this season, with the Silver Arrows working tirelessly to ensure he can compete at the top.
Max Verstappen did well to finish sixth on a testing day at the Australian Grand Prix
|GETTY
Russell expressed his delight after finishing first, saying: "Mega happy. It was kind of a race we were expecting - chaotic start, difficult to match the battery - yoyoing a bit with the overtakes.
"The closing speeds are so big with these new cars but it was mega.
"I was looking at my mirrors at Hadjar [at the start] and I had him [Charles Leclerc] covered but then he came out of nowhere.
"A good race. Today was more aligned with what we thought. We maybe had a tenth or two advantage but not the seven tenths of yesterday."