Max Verstappen praised Toro Rosso for the manner in which it recovered from a frustrating first race by securing sixth place in the Bahrain Grand Prix.

The opening race of the season saw Toro Rosso fail to capitalise on a strong qualifying performance as Verstappen finished tenth, one place behind team-mate Carlos Sainz. Bahrain saw a reversal of fortunes as Toro Rosso sacrificed qualifying - with both cars dropping out in Q2 - but was strong in the race as Verstappen climbed through to sixth.

Having been openly unhappy with how the team had performed on race day in Australia, Verstappen was full of praise for the way the second race weekend went.

"I think we bounced back very strongly from the first weekend and the whole team did a fantastic job – a great strategy, good pit-stops…" Verstappen said. "It all worked out perfectly, including our tyre management. The car was just doing what it had to do and felt good, we had great pace!

"It was an action-packed race and I really enjoyed it out there. To finish P6 is a fantastic way to finish the weekend and I’d like to thank the whole team for their excellent work.

"Also, this is the first time ever that the team scores points here in Bahrain, so I’m very happy to have changed this statistic – as I said before coming here, that was one of my objectives!"

DRIVER RATINGS: Bahrain Grand Prix

RACE REPORT: Rosberg beats Raikkonen to win in Bahrain

GALLERY: Sakhir podium

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter