Marko: We couldn't keep up with Ferrari's pace

Red Bull went into the 2022 Bahrain Grand Prix as favourites, as Ferrari kept their powder dry as long as they could, that is until qualifying last Saturday, where Charles Leclerc stole pole position from Max Verstappen.

The race was also a tough affair for the energy drinks' outfit, as Leclerc was able to keep Verstappen at arms' length all race long and had an answer to everything the Dutchman and his team threw at him.

Helmut Marko reflected on what he called a "very bitter" weekend in Bahrain, and told the media after the race: "We had hoped to win but, in the race, we couldn't keep up with Ferrari's pace. They were faster in sector two, but we also lost out on the straights to them.

"We also had brake problems, which forced us to slow ourselves," he added.

"Then we underestimated the undercut," Marko admitted after a race where it seemed that Red Bull were far from their best in execution and strategy, with Verstappen complaining on the team radio about their advice on the manner to handle the outlap.

"If Max had driven a normal outlap, he would have been in front of Leclerc. If you are ahead, the world suddenly looks very different."

As if the pace issues were not enough for Red Bull, Verstappen's RB18 developed a steering problem after the second pitstop, then lost power with two laps to go.

"The worst [part] is, of course, the double failure of both cars. At the end, there was something with the fuel supply. But what went wrong? We don't know," Marko continued.

"Something went wrong at Verstappen's pit-stop and something was damaged," the Austrian added. "He had to use a lot of strength when turning in, and he knew how to manage it, but then he had problems with the battery, or so Max thought – it turned out to be the fuel supply."

Sergio Perez also suffered a sudden loss of power spinning on the final lap as his Power Unit let go, unlike his teammate's car's gradual falling apart.

"With Max, they had announced themselves, in a way, about a lap and a half before that," Marko reflected. "With Perez, we thought the problem had stabilised, but, suddenly, he had no power anymore – it was not his fault."

Marko is not disheartened though as he pointed out: "It's the first race. The base of the car is good for this season.

"It's great that Ferrari is in such a good position. We clearly have some work to do, but the World Championship is not decided!

"But we have to investigate the many small problems that we have. In the next few days, we have to put our heads together.

"Getting angry won't help," the 78-year-old concluded.