The 2023 Qatar GP saw McLaren put in a blisteringly fast pit stop when Lando Norris came in for a tire change. With the stop lasting merely 1.80 seconds, the British team set the world record for the fastest pit stop in the history of F1, ousting Red Bull from the top, who held the previous record with a time of 1.82 seconds.
Appearing as a guest on the Talking Bull podcast on the official YouTube channel of Oracle Red Bull Racing, the team’s Sporting Director, Jonathan Wheatley, revealed he believes the loss is temporary and that they will soon be able to reclaim the record.
A HUGE congratulations to @redbullracing who have been awarded the DHL Fastest Pit Stop for 2023! Amazing work. The trophy was designed by @amits_formula and presented by Antonio Conte from @dhlexpressitaly.#DHLF1 #DHL #F1 #AbuDhabiGP #DHLFastestPitStop pic.twitter.com/6NHHC9IsJT
— DHL_Motorsports (@DHL_Motorsports) November 26, 2023
However, it doesn’t mean the team is putting its entire focus on reclaiming the record. Wheatley pointed out how their focus is still on quick and reliable pit stops and continuing to have the best average on the grid across any given season. Furthermore, Rich Wolverson, Red Bull’s senior engineer, reinforced Wheatley’s claims while showing confidence that the record will soon be theirs.
“We obviously want consistent and reliable pit stops, not the world record. If we go out to try and get the world record every time, there will be an issue. We don’t want an issue to affect the race. Whereas, if a 1.8 did come along, it’ll be alright because ultimately it will happen.”, stated Wolverson.
Talking about the impressive feat achieved by the McLaren crew, Wheatley joked about having to go through a couple of weeks of therapy before being able to speak about it in public. However, the Red Bull representative was all praises for the Woking team’s performance.
Changing tires in the light has become too easy for Red Bull
Having won the DHL award for the best pit stop crew in F1 for the last six years, it seemed Red Bull needed a new challenge to keep their crew on its toes. To achieve the same, the team decided to take on the challenge of changing a car’s tires based on muscle memory alone, as they attempted the ‘Pitch Black Pit Stop’ in their Milton Keynes HQ. The challenge is exactly as the name suggests- attempt a pit stop under pitch-black conditions.
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A 2.84s pitstop. In the PITCH BLACK.
Absolutely insane stuff from @redbullracing!
/ x Red Bull Content Pool#F1 pic.twitter.com/LakMNHkN9K
— Autosport (@autosport) December 14, 2023
The team was committed to achieving an impressive result from the challenge and decided to give themselves a total of ten attempts to register the fastest possible time. With the early pit stops taking as much as ten seconds to complete, the crew soon got in their groove and began working at their peak.
By the challenge’s end, the Red Bull pit crew’s fastest time was a staggering 2.84 seconds, asserting the team’s excellence in the process of lifting a car and changing its tires before letting it go.
