F1 2018: Red Bull time to be very good again

In the four years in which they dominated the sport, 2010 to 2013, Red Bull won eight titles during that period and racked up 41 victories in the process. Since 2014, the first year of the PU-era, titles have been elusive and their drivers scored only five grand prix victories in the past four years. Success is well overdue.

Now, after eight days of weather affected F1 preseason testing in Barcelona earlier this month, the body language from Red Bull team bosses certainly suggests hopes are up.

That could make things very interesting indeed — not just for the fans but also between 20-year-old Max Verstappen, with his army of orange-shirted fans, and big smiling but ferociously quick Australian team mate Daniel Ricciardo.

“There’s three quick teams and there’s no doubt that Red Bull are going to be the people that we are going to be fighting with this year,” said Mercedes technical head James Allison during the final week of testing.

“There’s still some blurriness, it’s still not possible to say for sure whether we’ve got our nose in front of them or they’ve got their nose in front of us. But you can say it’s close.

“I don’t know what their engine plans are, but looking at what they’ve brought here, I’d say they’ve still got some bodywork to bolt on for Melbourne,” added the former Ferrari technical head.

Ricciardo wrote the headlines last week when he went faster around Barcelona’s Circuit de Catalunya than anyone since the track was reconfigured in 2007, even if Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel went quicker the next day.

The Australian’s lap was faster than anything done in pre-season last year and also well inside the time Hamilton set for Mercedes during the 2017 Spanish Grand Prix to secure pole position.

“I’m sure Mercedes are still the top dogs at the moment but I don’t feel we are far off,” commented a happy Ricciardo. “If we can keep finding a few more things we can be very good.”

Verstappen ended last season strongly with two wins in the last six races, a feat matched only by Hamilton, while Ricciardo was triumphant in Azerbaijan.

Red Bull, winners of four championships in a row between 2010 and 2013 with Vettel, finished the 2017 campaign third overall.

The latest odds have Verstappen as 5-1 third favourite for the title, after Hamilton and Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel, with Ricciardo fourth but at 10-1.

The Australian, out of contract at the end of the season and considering options that could lead to Mercedes or Ferrari even though Red Bull want him to stay, suggested the bookmakers might have got their sums wrong on that one.

“I’m not personally a betting man but a lot of my mates are, so if they’re listening throw a cheeky $75,000 on it,” he grinned.