Reigning champion Max Verstappen has said he does not believe Red Bull has a car capable of challenging for victory at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix.

Verstappen won a fourth straight title in 2024 despite his team sliding to third in the constructors’ championship.

Red Bull completed the least laps of any team in preseason testing and appear to be pessimistic about the coming season.

“I don’t think we can fight for the win already in Melbourne,” Verstappen told Dutch media at an event on Friday.

Melbourne’s Albert Park Circuit and the opening races on the calendar are outliers to some of the more conventional tracks later in the year, meaning the result of the event might not provide a concrete idea of the competitive order for the season.

Verstappen’s closest rival last year was Lando Norris, who is the bookmakers’ favourite to win the title in 2025.

When asked who might fight for the championship, Verstappen pointed to Norris’ McLaren team.

“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,” he said.

“If you look at the lap times, then I think McLaren is the favourite. On our side, not everything went completely smoothly, but on the other hand we have some ideas on how to improve.”