After FP2 at the 2024 Las Vegas GP, several sources claimed that Red Bull had made a major mistake by forgetting to bring the correct rear wing for the weekend. Christian Horner, however, revealed that those rumors were not true.
The speculation arose after Red Bull’s struggles on the track on Thursday. Both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez finished near the bottom of the timesheet in the second session of the night.
“No, we did not forget a rear wing,” said Horner, debunking the reports. “There is no issue with it. I mean, I don’t know quite where it [the rumors] came from…”
Then why was Red Bull so slow? It was because the Milton-Keynes-based outfit did not have a rear wing designed for low-downforce. Not even in their factory, Horner revealed.
Verstappen described the handling of his RB20 as “driving on ice“, as he ended FP2 in seventeenth. Perez meanwhile, rather unsurprisingly, ended his day by finishing two places behind the Dutchman.
Horner: [..] potentially here at Monza. I mean, the money that is involved in creating that. Within the cost cap, you’ve got to pick and choose where you’re going to spend it.
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— Junaid #JB17 (@JunaidSamodien_) November 23, 2024
While things were better on Friday ahead of Qualifying, it was not quite where Red Bull would have liked to finish. Verstappen was P5 and Perez P13 in FP3, which set the stage for difficult times ahead.
Red Bull’s struggles raised questions about their setup, and Horner highlighted that financial constraints due to the cost cap limited their means. “The money that is involved in creating that. Within the cost cap, you’ve got to pick and choose where you’re going to spend it,” Horner said, as he justified why they didn’t have a low-downforce wing.
The Red Bull Team Principal added that they were using a modified version of an older wing in Las Vegas instead.
Mercedes seems to be the team to beat in Vegas
While Red Bull struggled before Qualifying, its rivals looked strong. Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren were all frontrunners, with the Silver Arrows showing particularly fast pace.
Lewis Hamilton topped both FP1 and FP2, and George Russell finished FP3 in first. McLaren’s Lando Norris and Ferrari drivers Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc were also consistently in the mix, showing competitive pace on the Las Vegas Strip circuit.
Mercedes remained on top in final practice for the Las Vegas Grand Prix courtesy of George Russell, with a little help from a red flaghttps://t.co/ulureC8TwL
— RACER (@RACERmag) November 23, 2024
While race pace will ultimately determine who wins or finishes ahead, Mercedes has shown the fastest performance in the Free Practice sessions. However, McLaren and Ferrari, given their strong form in 2024, cannot be ruled out.
