Red Bull baffled by FIA verdict: 'Are we the fastest on the straights?'

Without saying much, Arvid Lindblad managed to perfectly capture the overall feeling within Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls. When GPblog asked the rookie in Barcelona for his reaction to the FIA classifying the Red Bull Ford internal combustion engine as the benchmark in Formula 1, his first response was simply: "No comment."

After some gentle probing from this website, Lindblad posed a question before answering it himself: "Are we the fastest on the straights? I've not got much to comment on. I don't think we're the fastest on the straights," the Briton said, clearly considering the matter closed.

At least that was the case in his conversation with the media. Internally, Red Bull is far from ready to move on from the issue. Across Red Bull Racing, Racing Bulls and Red Bull Ford Powertrains, there is significant frustration over the FIA's ruling, which prevents the new manufacturer from making upgrades to its power unit, while rivals - including dominant force Mercedes - are permitted to do so.

The feeling inside the prominent Red Bull Energy Station in the Barcelona paddock is that the decision is both difficult to understand and unfair. If - and the Austrians stress the importance of that "if" - Red Bull really does have the strongest internal combustion engine, then Mercedes should be extremely close. The fact that the German manufacturer is still allowed to improve its power unit is therefore hard for many within the organisation to comprehend.

"I think we have a good power unit for sure," replied Lawson, Lindblad's teammate. "I think we've done maybe [more than] what people expected, even maybe what we expected at the start, coming in with a brand-new power unit, new team to build that. And I think HPP has done an incredible job and we have a very competitive power unit. It's hard to know who's got the actual best.

In any case, Red Bull has been informed by the FIA that the data is being reviewed once again. That may explain why Verstappen - much like Lindblad earlier on Thursday - was relatively cautious in his response.

"I think we were all a little bit surprised with that news. Yeah, I guess that's why we're talking to the FIA now to see what happened there. How they came to that conclusion, I guess. There's not much more to say right now," said the former world champion.

The surprise was not limited to Red Bull and Racing Bulls. Most Formula 1 drivers who commented on the subject admitted they were taken aback by Red Bull Ford being identified as the benchmark. They also felt it was entirely natural for the decision to be questioned.