George Russell says Red Bull have got this year’s Formula 1 championship “sewn up” and declared “they should win every single this year” after dominating the season opener in Bahrain.
Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez claimed a comfortable one-two finish at the Bahrain Grand Prix having both started at the front of the grid.
The reigning world champion won by 11.987 seconds from his Red Bull team-mate, who was almost 40 seconds ahead of Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso who rounded out the podium.
Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff said Red Bull were on a “different planet” after the race and felt his team would need to completely abandon its own cap concept.
Russell, who finished down in seventh, reiterated that sentiment, pointing to Red Bull’s probable dominance in 2023.
“Red Bull have got this championship sewn up,” Russell said. “I don’t think anyone will be fighting with them this year. They should win every single race this year, is my bet.
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“They’ve got it easy at the moment. They can do what they like. They might not be on pole all the time because we know Ferrari are very competitive in qualifying but when it comes to race pace they’re in a very strong position.”
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner downplayed Russell’s comments, insisting it was far too early to be talking like that.
“Twenty-three races is a marathon,” Horner said. “It’s about being consistent over the campaign.
“Today was a great start. We full expect our rivals to come back hard in the future races.”