Windsor praises Alonso: 'Hamilton won't forget this soon'

The season could not have started better for Red Bull: an effortless first place for Max Verstappen and a strong second place for Sergio Perez with a 26-second gap to the rest of the field.

"We shouldn't forget the brilliant of Red Bull," said Windsor. "The way they ran all their compounds through long runs, incredible reliability. Incredible consistency between both drivers. Verstappen on it from the beginning of qualifying through to the end of the race. Perez there to pick up any slack if there was any problem with Max."

'Hamilton won't forget this'

Fernando Alonso managed a handsome podium finish. Although the Spaniard was helped somewhat by the retirement of Charles Leclerc, Alonso passed both Mercedes drivers and Carlos Sainz's Ferrari entirely under his own steam.

"in terms of putting a race together, and just using his sheer animal-competitive nature to catch the car in front. To create passes that others never think about then Fernando Alonso is your man," Windsor summed up. "What he did to Hamilton at turn nine, I won't forget it for a long time and I doubt Lewis won't either. I say to Alonso, it was stunning and he really earned that third place. That's what we will remember this race for."