“It was like I was playing a video game on a ‘super easy’ level”: Verstappen and his absolute dominance at the start of the F1 season | ANALYSIS

There wasn’t a single scary moment in yesterday’s race. Max always led and with such force that his two pit stops did not affect his leadership. It was like he was playing a video game on ‘super easy’ level. From the start, he surpassed Charles Leclerc, who complained more than necessary on the radio. Since then, he simply went on autopilot towards his 55th victory. Behind, Checo Pérez did what was asked of him: capture second place, escort the champion and close the 1-2 for the winged team. The Mexican is only required to take the best car on the grid to its natural place, the podium. He took the position on turn seven and managed the timing solidly. A solid start for Red Bull that makes it clear that the excitement and chance in this category are dormant as long as they dominate.

“Let’s move on to plan A,” Ferrari strategists said over the radio to their drivers on lap seven. A phrase that awakened all the memories of the mistakes of last season and that made it clear to us that although the Italian house is improving, it is not there to be familiar with the winged ones. Carlos Sainzofficially sidelined from the team in 2025 due to the arrival of Lewis Hamiltonwas the best of the scarlets and took the spotlight away from Leclerc when the race had not gone beyond twelve laps. He would then overtake him again after the pit stop. What the Spaniard did helped him close the podium and finish third. A more than deserved placement that makes us ask a question that will haunt us throughout 2024: was Leclerc the driver Ferrari should have trusted? Yesterday we saw him talking more on the radio than on the track. Beyond the curiosity of the Azzurri team’s internal team, Ferrari achieved 3-4 and has started the year as the second most solid team.

Back, much further back, Lewis finished seventh. With a contract on countdown with Mercedes, the Briton had an opaque race while Russell tried to take the podium ahead, but the car was not enough for him. This time he was not heard demanding on the radio and the only thing he managed to claim was that his “seat was broken”, receiving in response a silence that says a lot. What a chilly farewell season lies ahead for what seemed like an unbreakable relationship between Lewis Hamilton and Toto Wolff. As cold as the dominance of Max, who after appearing in 2024 with a Grand Chelem thanked his team without the slightest bit of emotion with “you can’t ask for more.” The deja vu has begun.