Track temps behind Red Bull's Canada struggles

Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen had high hopes of being able to challenge Mercedes and Ferrari for victory in Montreal heading into the weekend.

But the pair both struggled to get pace out of their tyres and failed to take a podium – as the event was dominated by Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel.

Reflecting on what happened, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said: “To be honest, the conditions today, we were not within the right window on the tyre.

“It was 16-degree circuit temperature and we just got into more trouble at the end of the stints, and didn't quite have the range that, certainly, the Mercedes and Williams had [with a one-stop].

"With Ferrari [on a two-stop] it was difficult to see with the strategy if they had that kind of range.

“I think that those cars traditionally put a bit more energy into their tyre and on a cold day like today, that has assisted to get the tyre into the right working temperature.”

Engine boost

Despite not getting the result the team had hoped for, Horner said there had been encouraging signs from the weekend – among them the fact Red Bull was not so far off Mercedes at a power track.

The Montreal weekend was the first time that both Red Bull's drivers had had Renault's upgraded engine – which was estimated to be worth around half a second per lap.

“If you look at our straightline speeds, they are a step in the right direction,” said Horner. “We have still got more to go but for this circuit, which is power dominated, compared to 12 months ago when we were a lap or so behind, and I think we were 1.5 seconds off in qualifying last year, this year we are three tenths away.

“So I think it really is a step in the right direction. There will be some tracks, Ferrari will be a bit stronger and hopefully we will have days where we are stronger than them as well.”