Red Bull, start as fourth force (or even worse)
It has been, and continues to be, strange months at Red Bull. Until the Montmeló shakedown, the Milton Keynes team’s concern was that they had not built a power unit up to the knowledge and experience of Mercedes and Ferrari: the first kilometers on track instead dispelled this fear (George Russell, with exaggerated gamesmanship but not without a grain of truth, praised the first engine built by Red Bull) but in the meantime, other major problems have emerged.
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Red Bull, looking at the Constructors’ standings, is the sixth force in the World Championship, level on points with Alpine and two points behind Haas. These results are affected by the retirements of Isack Hadjar in Australia and Max Verstappen in China, but in any case, the Milton Keynes team is far behind Mercedes and Ferrari. And, indeed, that McLaren which seemed at the same level in Melbourne has shifted up one or two gears in Japan. The biggest problems seem to lie in the chassis and aerodynamics, once indisputable strengths and now an aspect that Hadjar has defined as “terrible“.
Mekies’ words
Team principal Laurent Mekies, analyzing Red Bull’s difficult start, does not lose heart and counts on the strength the team has always shown in developments: “Trying to solve these types of complex problems is our main task. As frustrating as it is to be at the bottom of the top teams’ standings, we are structured to get to the root of the problems and carry out developments that improve performance. Now I am sorry about this situation, but I have full confidence that we excel at exactly this“.
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“In Melbourne, McLaren seemed within reach, and in fact Max climbed back from 20th position to then face Norris. In China, the gap (from Mercedes, ed.) widened and we started to question the balance and characteristics of the car. Even in Japan, the situation was not good at all, and we are not happy with the weekend. I think our problems are a combination of base performance and failure to exploit the package“, concluded the former Ferrari man.
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