Why Red Bull Chief Was Happy for Ferrari Driver While Max Verstappen Lost 2020 Title

Max Verstappen made his F1 debut in 2015 with Red Bull’s sister team Toro Rosso. He impressed immediately upon joining the grid, and after just a year & a half, Red Bull promoted him to the main team. He took the sport by storm by winning his first ever race with them in Barcelona.

His stunning performances convinced everyone that he was a world champion in the waiting. Verstappen’s aim was always to become a champion but he wanted to do it as quickly as possible. Sebastian Vettel won the world championship with Red Bull when he was just 23 years old which made him the youngest title winner in F1 history, and that was the record Verstappen set his eyes on.

Red Bull, however, spent the majority of time in Mercedes and Ferrari’s shadows during his attempted title charges. Heading into the 2020 season, there was optimism in the Red Bull camp as they aimed to challenge Mercedes for the crown. It was also Verstappen’s last attempt at breaking Vettel’s record of becoming the youngest world champion of all time.

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Red Bull was not upset with Max Verstappen missing out on 2020 World Championship

The 2020 World Championship was a one horse race. Lewis Hamilton dominated the season to win his seventh World Championship, and it was the Brackley-based outfit’s seventh consecutive constructors’ title win. Red Bull were much slower than Mercedes, and it spoiled Verstappen’s chances of becoming the youngest title winner in the sport’s history.

Verstappen was understandably disappointed that he missed out on the milestone. Red Bull chief advisor Helmut Marko, however, was not very upset about it. This is because, the record still belonged to their former driver Vettel.

“Of course Max was disappointed about this season,” he said. “Especially because we did not reach the goal we had set ourselves. To become the youngest world champion with him. But at least the record remains in the family with Sebastian Vettel.”

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Sergio Perez to challenge Verstappen for 2023 Title

Verstappen missed out on the 202o World Championship but made up for it the very next year. He was engaged in a season long battle alongside Hamilton, which went in his favor. Verstappen followed it up with yet another win in 2022, this time doing so in dominant fashion.

In 2021, Sergio Perez joined Red Bull and became Verstappen’s teammate. The Mexican driver was instrumental in helping Verstappen win a lot of races on his way to becoming a two-time champion. However, the gap between them was huge in terms of performance.

Heading into the 2023 season, Perez feels that he is finally ready to challenge for the crown and he is confident of matching Verstappen.