Red Bull dominated F1 in 2022 and 2023, with Max Verstappen guiding the team to both championships comfortably. 2024, however, saw McLaren and Mercedes catch up and Red Bull slipped down the pecking order.
The Milton-Keynes-based outfit knows this, and its technical director Pierre Wache laughed and admitted that they don’t have any strength to rely on. He tells Motorsport,
“I think we have improved a lot in the medium-speed and slow corners compared to last year. We are now – relatively speaking compared to the competition – a little less good in fast corners than last year.”
It’s summer break, baby
Monza, 2022#F1 || #RedBullRacing pic.twitter.com/xdhlRNxXUO
— Oracle Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) August 2, 2024
Red Bull struggled in circuits with slower speeds comprehensively in 2023, but since their overall package was so good, it didn’t hurt the results. The only race they lost in the whole campaign was the Singapore GP, which Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz won.
Wache revealed that Red Bull continues to struggle in bouncy tracks, that have a lot of kerbs. “That was also the case last year. We have not taken the expected step with that,” he added.
Red Bull is still leading the Constructors’ Championship, but their lead over McLaren in P2 has been reduced to 42 points. With a couple of poor performances after the summer break, the Austrian stable could see itself losing out on P1, for the first time since 2021.
Red Bull’s hopes are dwindling
Red Bull would not want to lose its dominant grasp on the rest of the grid any time soon, but development and upgrades have not gone their way so far this campaign. They started the season on a strong note, with Verstappen cruising to victories. But soon, they entered a slump.
Verstappen is now struggling to win races, whereas Sergio Perez is nowhere near the top five. Plus, key figures are leaving the outfit. First, it was Adrian Newey who announced he would be departing, and then, sporting director Jonathan Wheatley’s exit became official earlier this week.
Verstappen continues to be frustrated with the team, and if things don’t improve, he could make the rumors of him joining Mercedes a reality. The Silver Arrows are in a much better place right now, in terms of performance. And a three-time world champion like Verstappen wants a winning car.
