Helmut Marko cut a forlorn figure after witnessing his Red Bull team getting trounced in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix and laments the fact that Mercedes were cruising to yet another dominant victory until they botched their strategy and Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel stole a victory that even he termed lucky.
Marko told reporters after the race in Melbourne, "Mercedes is playing games with everyone. They can play with their power modes how far ahead they are, but this time they apparently got it wrong and are too far ahead."
"I said to Ferrari: Mercedes is five tenths [of a second] ahead and they said no, but everyone has been sleeping. With that engine, no one can beat Mercedes. They're in a different world."
"Our car is very good and that's why we're close but with these engine regulations, it will remain the same until 2021."
"Even Ferrari is waking up now. They start to realise that they will never catch Mercedes with these engines. We need engine parity, which was always promised to us. These engines are much further apart than three percent apart. so the FIA has to act now."
At the Albert Park opener, Red Bull's Daniel Ricciardo finished fourth while teammate Max Verstappen crossed the line in sixth.
McLaren chief Eric Boullier echoed the sentiments to Marca, "Mercedes produced a very strong power unit from the start and reaching their level is difficult."
"Now we need Liberty Media and the FIA to take action to close the gap and have more cars fighting on the track," added Boullier whose team switched from Honda to Renault starting this season.
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