Max Verstappen is heading into the 2025 season as a four-time world champion, but Red Bull isn’t in the dominant position it once was. Even though Verstappen won the title last year, his team dropped to third in the Constructors’ Championship, and preseason testing in Bahrain only added to their concerns.

Red Bull completed the fewest laps of any team and faced technical issues, preventing them from doing race simulations. Verstappen initially said the new RB21 felt better than last year’s car, but as testing ended, he was much less optimistic.

“I don’t think we can fight for the win already in Melbourne,” he admitted to Dutch media at a Viaplay event.

He did acknowledge that “everything [on the RB21] can be set up a little bit better in Melbourne than in Bahrain,” but his confidence in the car seemed low. The first few races of the season, including Melbourne, don’t always reflect the real competitive order, but Red Bull’s preseason struggles suggest they could have a slow start.

Meanwhile, McLaren looked very strong, impressing with their long-run pace. Asked how many teams could compete for the world title in 2025, Verstappen pointed to McLaren: “At the moment only one, and that team is orange! That’s a very nice colour of course, but from our side, we still have work to do. Other teams want to see some improvements as well, I think, so at the moment one team is clearly in front.”

Red Bull’s biggest problem in Bahrain was the RB21’s handling. The car suffered from understeer in slow corners and oversteer in fast ones, making it difficult to drive.

“In terms of balance, it does feel a bit more connected when entering the corners and also in the middle of the corners,” Verstappen explained.

“But on the other hand, there are still problems with the kerbs and with the bumps. Those things are obviously not our strongest points, and I keep mentioning that. It doesn’t always have to be said to the outside world, but during the meetings we obviously talk a lot about it.”

Despite the struggles, Verstappen remained hopeful that Red Bull can improve over the season. He summed up the situation by saying the new car “can’t be worse than last year,” even if it doesn’t yet match the RB20’s early-season performance. Red Bull has often found ways to develop its car as the season goes on, but with McLaren looking like a serious threat and Ferrari and Mercedes also improving, Verstappen could be in for his toughest season in years.