Red Bull’s struggles with development in 2024 have limited their progress and allowed McLaren and Mercedes to overtake them in terms of performance. Team Principal Christian Horner knows which area his team is lagging in, and pointed out the differences in an interview after the Dutch GP.
At Zandvoort, McLaren comprehensively outpaced Red Bull. Lando Norris, in his MCL38, finished 22 seconds ahead of Max Verstappen to win his second race of the season.
Horner feels that the front wing is the “key area” that has affected Red Bull the most. He stated that McLaren and Mercedes have taken a different approach with the same, which has made them faster. He said,
“The way the front wings are being used are quite different. If you look at the front wing angle of McLaren and Mercedes, they’re very, very different. Very different to that rest of the grid.”, Horner added.
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“I think it’s more where have the others found performance? I think the front wing is a key area where others have found some performance.”
“The way… pic.twitter.com/jJOh1hEiO5
— RBR News (@redbulletin) August 27, 2024
Mercedes was not particularly fast at the Dutch GP, but neither Red Bull driver had an answer for the McLarens they were chasing. Norris got the better of Verstappen, and while Oscar Piastri didn’t get on the podium, he finished ahead of Sergio Perez in the other Red Bull.
This was crucial, as it brought down the gap between them and Red Bull at the top of the standings to just 30 points. At the rate at which McLaren is catching Red Bull, they could pass them to take the constructors’ championship lead as early as the US GP in October.
Horner, however, is not very worried. He is sure that Red Bull can become as fast as it was before in the coming races.
Things change quickly in F1, says Horner
Horner spoke about how, not too long ago, the entire paddock was worrying about Red Bull’s dominance when Verstappen was winning races with 20+ second margins. But McLaren showed that turning the tables in the same season was not that difficult.
“Well, it just shows that things can move very quickly… And then it can change very quickly, and that means it can change back the other way as well.”, the Red Bull boss said.
The F1 season continues this coming weekend with the Italian GP, which Verstappen has won two years in a row. This year, however, he enters as the second-favorite, with McLaren’s Norris predicted to be the fastest in terms of performance.
