Max Verstappen doesn’t feel that the rivals will be able to improve enough to give him enough competition when F1 returns in 2024. Even though he expects things to get tough, the Dutchman still has hope that things are not going to get tough for him next year.
Speaking about this, Verstappen told NOS, “Running the same season will be almost impossible. We will of course try to develop our car further, but the other teams have learned a lot from us. I don’t hope there will be more competition, but I expect there to be.”
This is the perfect way to end our extraordinary season I’m extremely grateful for all of the hard work that’s gone into this year by each and everyone of you involved @redbullracing & @HondaRacingGLB To win 19 races in a season is just incredible It’s a privilege to be… pic.twitter.com/vOkhVPyD0k
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) November 26, 2023
Admittedly, the field has closed up quite a bit in 2023. After the introduction of new regulations in 2022, the field was a bit scattered, which was not the case last year. Teams like Ferrari, Mercedes, McLaren, and Aston Martin are separated by just a slight margin, and in 2024, things seem to get even closer.
However, for Verstappen, he doesn’t have much to worry about as Red Bull already has a mighty advantage over its competitors. The Austrian team secured more than double points than P2 in the Constructors’ championship and it speaks volumes about their advancement.
How is Red Bull expected to hold the edge over its rivals in 2024?
Red Bull took 21 wins in 22 races in the 2023 F1 season. That too after not developing their RB19 to a great extent after the summer break. This gives an idea about the might they are going to have in their upcoming 2024 F1 challenger RB20.
The Red Bull challenger is already better in DRS zones, straight-line speed-wise. Since they already have the wind tunnel time due to no cost cap punishment this year, the level of development can be a lot higher.
Amazing to come home to a factory full of Champions Thank you everyone @redbullracing for making such an incredible season possible pic.twitter.com/b5lfEL7BvU
— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) December 14, 2023
Furthermore, they are also working to get faster in high-speed as well as low-speed corners. Once Adrian Newey irons out these issues, the Milton-Keynes-based team may be untouchable for the grid. At least till 2025, right before the new regulations in 2026.
Notably, Max Verstappen also had his part to play in the massive dominance shown by his team. The Dutchman was very clinical with his performance as he finished every lap in the 2023 F1 season and led a staggering 1003 laps altogether.
