Earlier today, Red Bull driver Max Verstappen sealed third during Australian GP 2019. He ended up behind the Mercedes duo of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton respectively. The Dutch driver also split the Mercedes duo from the Ferrari pair of Sebastian Vettel and Charles LeClerc.
Meanwhile, teammate Pierre Gasly ended up 11th fastest on the track, from 17th on the grid. Even though the Frenchman was far down the order compared to Max, the team lauded his fight back up the field.
Later on Twitter, the team could not resist throwing a cheeky jab at former McLaren driver Fernando Alonso. Last year, he finished 5th for the British outfit in their first season with Renault power. As he crossed the finish line, He crowed out on the radio “Now we can fight!”
Now we can fight! 😉 P3 for @Max33Verstappen in Melbourne secures a first podium for @HondaRacingF1 since the 2008 British Grand Prix! 👏 #AusGP 🇦🇺 #F1 pic.twitter.com/XnFNKlgRWm
— Aston Martin Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) March 17, 2019
Now, Red Bull have alluded to Alonso’s statement with a declaration of their own after Max Verstappen’s podium. Interestingly, this was Honda’s first visit to the podium since their return to F1 and the start of the V6 Hybrid era.
Of course, after Alonso’s proud declaration, things went uphill and downhill for the team. So when Red Bull says it, will lightning strike twice? or will they finally prove that Honda can be taken seriously. There are 20 more races to go and they will prove whether Red Bull’s pace in Australia is representative of what’s to come during the rest of the season.