Christian Horner, the team principal of Red Bull Racing, has shed light on the team’s strategy to close the gap on Formula 1 rival, McLaren. Despite a rocky start to the season, with no victories in the opening races in Australia and China, Horner remains optimistic about the plan to improve the performance of the team’s car, the RB21.
This year’s performance marks the poorest beginning to a season for Red Bull since 2020. Despite this, Red Bull’s star driver Max Verstappen remained competitive, staying within striking distance of the leaders even as his teammate Liam Lawson struggled to score points. This imbalance has left Red Bull trailing McLaren by a significant 42 points.
Verstappen managed to limit the damage at the Sprint, achieving a top-three finish. His relentless efforts brought him to fourth place, preserving his standing close to championship front-runner, Lando Norris. However, concerns about tyre degradation prevented a more aggressive race strategy and possibly a podium finish.
Horner revealed that the team’s apprehension about the front-left tyre’s durability led to a conservative approach. “We anticipated a two-stop race and, based on our experience with the Sprint race, decided to conserve the tyre for the first stint to avoid excessive wear,” Horner explained.
In retrospect, Horner believes a more aggressive approach could have yielded better results. “The pace on the in-lap suggests that we could have pushed harder in the first stint. That might have put Max in contention with George [Russell] towards the end of the race,” he mused.
Horner acknowledged the need to decipher the apparent trend of the RB21 performing better as the fuel load decreases. He stressed the importance of understanding the factors contributing to the car’s competitiveness and how to optimise tyre performance. Although Red Bull is trailing in the Drivers’ Championship, Horner remains confident about the team’s potential for improvement.
Contrary to Verstappen’s pessimistic remarks about the RB21’s competitiveness in Shanghai, Horner disputed the idea that their car is slower than the competition. He argued that performance varies based on factors specific to each race and maintained that their current standing is not far behind McLaren.
“We have to focus on beating McLaren, they’ve won the first two races. We have a solid base; we were just 0.17 seconds off pole and matched the McLarens’ pace in the second stint,” Horner stated. He revealed that there is a roadmap of development planned for the car, aiming to increase lap time and put pressure on McLaren.
As Red Bull Racing gears up for the next race in Japan, it’s evident that the team is striving to learn from recent performances and make necessary improvements. With a strategic development plan in place, they hope to close the gap on McLaren and re-establish their competitive edge.