Christian Horner admits there are no guarantees that Red Bull have fully solved the issue that led to them suffering a double DNF in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix. Max Verstappen had spent much of the race at the front of the field, but was forced to retire in the closing stages due to a mechanical problem. Teammate Sergio Perez was then affected by an issue on the final lap, resulting in the team leaving Sakhir with no points. Red Bulll later confirmed that both cars had suffered from a "lack of fuel pressure", and reiterated that they have since taken the necessary steps to fix the problem.
Horner: We'll only know at the end of the race if issue is solved
The team are clearly feeling assured that they have tackled the issue, but Horner says that they will only fully know if this is the case by the end of the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, for which Perez will be starting from pole position. When asked how confident he is that the problem has been solved on a scale of one to 10, Horner told Sky Sports F1 : "I hate those kinds of questions! "We think we've understood it, but we'll only know at the end of the race. "We believe we found the problem and we've addressed the issue, but you want to see that chequered flag."
Horner praises efforts by Red Bull to tackle F1's new era
Perez managed to beat the Ferraris of Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz to secure pole for Sunday's race in Jeddah, whilst Verstappen will start just behind the trio in fourth. Given that the Scuderia focused their attentions on preparing for 2022 earlier than some teams, Horner has praised Red Bull for managing to compete with the Italian outfit so early in the season. "Ferrari are mighty," Horner explained. "Their car has been so competitive. They obviously started early on this project. "We put a lot into last year and I think [it's great] for all the guys and girls back [at the factory] in Milton Keynes to have a pole position at round two with these all new regulations, and to have Max up there on the second row as well. "For sure, we were late on to this project, and the effort [the team have put in] in the time that they had available has just been staggering."
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