Red Bull Racing has been the most dominant team in F1 since the start of the 2023 season. The team has won all 12 Grand Prix this season and are heavy favorites to become the first team to ever win all the races in a single campaign. While the team is garnering praise for their performances from everyone, F1 expert and former Red Bull driver Mark Webber believes they could be praised even more if they were similar to rivals Mercedes.
Ever since their debut campaign, Red Bull has always been a ‘customer team,’ meaning they purchase power units and certain car parts from different manufacturers but don’t make anything on their own. Nevertheless, in the competition’s 73-year history, only four teams including Red Bull have managed to win 100 or more races. Red Bull officially stands as the team to achieve this feat the fastest, doing so in just 14 years.
After entering the sport in 2005, Red Bull saw a dominant run from 2010 to 2013 before the onset of the turb0-hybrid era. Mercedes took over Red Bull’s throne in 2014 and sat on it for eight consecutive seasons. This did not dishearten the Austrian team as they continued making improvements to their car and, much to their appreciation, took back the championship from the Silver Arrows in 2022. The Milton-Keynes-based outfit has seen continued praise for their consistent improvements, but Webber believes they would earn even more praise if they operated more like Mercedes.
Mark Webber believes Red Bull can earn even more praise for their performances
Per the words of Mark Webber on autosport.com, the former Red Bull driver believes that they are worthy of high praise given what they have achieved in such little time in F1. The former driver also mentioned that they would receive even more praise if they were less of a customer team.
“If it was a manufacturer, it might get some more praise and notoriety. Because, in essence, it’s still a team made of tremendous individuals and people that have done a great job to engineer beautiful Formula 1 cars for world championships with constructors’ and drivers’ [titles], and to be dominant in many ways.”
Much to Webber’s delight, Red Bull will soon start producing its own engine after their deal with Honda ends. Once Ford enters the F1 scene in 2026, both teams will work together to manufacture engines suited to Red Bull’s needs.
The Australian says it is a testament to the Milton Keynes-based team’s skills, for what they have been able to build in terms of their staff and infrastructure.
Red Bull’s performance both on and off the track has been tremendous
Though they have been a customer team, Red Bull has performed exceedingly well with a Honda engine at its helm. The team remains unbeaten in 2023 and has built a 256-point lead over second-placed Mercedes heading into the summer break. Max Verstappen has been the torch-bearer for his team’s dominance, winning 10 out of the 12 races so far.
Webber also praised Christian Horner‘s team for employing a team of dedicated individuals. The commitment shown by Red Bull’s employees while running two F1 teams has been second to none. The Australian believes that Red Bull’s involvement in the sport, other than racing, has been nothing short of extraordinary.
