Red Bull believe third on the grid could have been possible had it not been for Sebastian Vettel causing bedlam in qualifying.
Max Verstappen was unable to set a second timed lap in Q3 after the clock ran out before he crossed the start/finish line, but that was because of traffic on the back straight as the top 10 drivers backed up.
As a result, the Dutchman had to settle for fifth on the grid, but afterwards, it was clear his frustration was aimed solely at the Ferrari driver.
“We were just staying neatly behind each other, but at a certain point Vettel passed me and the two Renaults as well,” he told Ziggo Sport.
“So they f****d up my entire build up when there is an unwritten rule that you just follow each other.
“But whatever,” Max added. “From now on in qualifying, I’m going to f**k them up as well.”
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Later, talking to Sky Sports, a calmer Verstappen took a more reflective view.
“This time it caught me out so of course, I’m not happy about that, but it will swing around and it will come back to others as well,” he said.
“Sometimes it’s annoying because we could have fought for third today but now we just have to do some more overtaking.
“It was there, we were fighting for third.”
Red Bull boss Christian Horner agreed the whole situation was a “shame” and rued an opportunity to battle the two Ferraris, but did have one conclusion.
“It means we have to race harder tomorrow,” he declared.