Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko wasn’t shy of praising Honda after the team conducted a shakedown of the RB15 on Wednesday.
The much-debated new partnership hit the track for the first time at Silverstone ahead of the new Formula 1 season, with Max Verstappen completing the permitted 100km filming day.
And after the Dutchman had declared himself happy with his first impression, it was Marko who then boarded the hype train.
“The Honda engine already had more power than Renault at the end of last season and now they have improved it even more over the winter,” he stated to Germany’s Auto Bild.
“The numbers that we see are very positive. As for power, for the first time, we can say that we have a ‘party mode’.
“Hopefully it should be enough for us to drive at the front on our own.”
As for the RB15 chassis, the Austrian described is as a “typical [Adrian] Newey car but with everything having been done with Honda in mind.
“The car ran perfectly right from the beginning of the shakedown,” Marko added.