Red Bull showcased true dominance for the first time in ages in Austin for the United States GP Sprint Race on Saturday. Max Verstappen won with a 3.8-second gap to Carlos Sainz, who finished P2. Although it was only for eight points, it provided a much-needed sense of relief for the team, something Christian Horner emphasized in his remarks after the race.
Verstappen started from P1, and a victory never looked to be in doubt. For the Dutchman, who hadn’t won a race in the last eight Grand Prix weekends, this was a huge moment, as now he can eye the 25 points up for grabs on Sunday.
“A real energy boost for the whole team,” a happy-looking Horner told Sky Sports after the race. “There’s a huge amount of work going into these cars.”
MAX WINSSSSSS THE SPRINT #F1 || #RedBullRacing pic.twitter.com/Co5mOA4u6s
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) October 19, 2024
“It’s our first win since June, so it gives everyone a lift. The performance of the car was very strong and Max managed the race beautifully throughout,” the Red Bull Team Principal added. Red Bull, after a strong start to the 2024 campaign, struggled with the RB20’s dominance, which derailed Verstappen’s road to the title somewhat.
This allowed McLaren’s Lando Norris to narrow the gap to just 52 points as they approached the Austin race weekend. However, Verstappen’s P1 and Norris’ P3 result has now increased the gap to 54, with the McLaren driver’s task of dethroning the reigning World Champion becoming even tougher.
Horner expects tough competition from Ferrari
While many expected McLaren to be the team to be hunted down, it turns out that Red Bull and Verstappen are the ones in the spotlight. Verstappen will surely be eyeing the pole position on Saturday evening and will aim to follow it up with a win—his first Grand Prix victory since June.
Horner, however, does not see an easy road to glory. He feels that Ferrari will make life difficult for the Milton-Keynes-based team on Saturday.
What a battle in the Sprint! Fantastic racing on display in Austin!#USGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/wYKuueEwPA
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) October 19, 2024
“Ferrari looked very competitive even though they were pushing each other hard,” said Horner, highlighting the pace shown by both Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc in their battle for P3. “They [Ferrari] will be strong in the race tomorrow for sure…” Horner insisted.
One thing that Horner hinted could play to their advantage was tire degradation, as he felt Verstappen managed it better. With the energy boost that Horner mentioned earlier in the interview, Red Bull will feel confident in their ability to reclaim their position at the top of the dominance charts on Sunday—a pedestal they have held in F1 since 2021.
