Verstappen: Mercedes 'just too quick' for Red Bull

Max Verstappen conceded that Mercedes were just too fast for the Red Bull in the Spanish Grand Prix, with the Dutchman having to settle for a distant third place.

Verstappen started from fourth on the grid and was promoted to third at the first corner, thanks to a mistake from Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.

From there he enjoyed a lonely race, failing to match the pace of the Mercedes cars in front but benefited from the two Ferrari drivers – Vettel and Charles Leclerc – squabbling over position behind.

Not even a late-race safety car - caused by Lando Norris and Lance Stroll colliding in turn two – could help Verstappen make progress, as the restart saw him once again struggle to make any headway.

Verstappen had little to say after the race, telling Sky Sports that he calmly approached the first turn and held it from there.

“It was a hectic first corner so I just backed out of it, and from there on the Mercedes cars were just too quick today,” Verstappen said.

“But I could do my own pace. Yeah, we were competitive. It's good to be on the podium.”

This is Verstappen's third podium of the five races so far, seeing him comfortably third in the championship and ahead of both Ferrari drivers. When asked about the gap to the Scuderia at the end of the race, Verstappen said that whilst he was pushing hard to keep the gap, he believes Ferrari simply couldn't do anything about it.

"I think they were trying at the end as hard as they could but of course I was also pushing flat out."

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