I’ve never seen a car so fast

After seeing one breeze past him at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton said Red Bull’s current car is faster than anything he ever had during Mercedes’ dominant spell of a few years ago.

Red Bull recorded a second straight one-two finish at Sunday’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, finishing comfortably clear of its rivals.

The reigning world champions have taken the place of Mercedes as F1’s dominant force after the German manufacturer won eight straight constructors’ titles between 2014 and 2021.

Max Verstappen, winner of the last two drivers’ championships, started 15th after a qualifying car issue but eased back through the field and made light work of Hamilton and his teammate George Russell on his way back through to second.

When asked if it was a concern for F1 to see Red Bull so far ahead, Hamilton said: “I don’t know it’s not for me to say, but I’ve never seen a car so fast.

“When we were fast we weren’t that fast. That’s the fastest car I’ve seen compared to the rest, I don’t know why or how but he came past me with serious speed.

“I didn’t even bother to block because there was a massive speed difference.”

Ferrari have also dropped further behind Red Bull compared to last year.

Carlos Sainz agrees with Hamilton that Red Bull are on a different level to anyone else this year but said that’s not something fans should be critical of.

“I’ve never been a fan of being concerned with one team dominating, because if they’ve done such a good job, they deserve it,” the Ferrari driver said after finishing sixth. “I mean, I wish it was.

“Unfortunately this is a car sport more than drivers, we know that makes the difference more. Although Red Bull has a very strong lineup, obviously, but if a car is really good all the other drivers can’t do much to stay in that fight. But we’ve seen it in the past it’s nothing new.

“The recovery from Max from 15th proves they’re in a different league.”