Red Bull has been fighting a four-way battle to defend its world title. Although the season started with Red Bull as the only dominant force, the chasing forces have whittled it down. Meanwhile, the internal chaos continues to disrupt the RBR camp.
Thus, the team tries its best to contain the damage as it attempts to revisit the halcyon. However, the pathway is complicated as McLaren and Mercedes are on top of their game, while Ferrari is waiting to regain momentum. However, RBR’s technical spearhead believes the rival teams were too late to catch up with the defending champions.
Red Bull Blasts Rivals For Dealyed Attempt To Overtake World Champions
The Red Bull team has not won a race in the last four outings. Moreover, the RB20 has some technical shortcomings, hindering its pace and balance. To further aggravate its woes, Sergi Perez had been on a string of shoddy performances, consistently failing to score points. Despite these drawbacks, the Milton Keynes-based outfit is full of confidence as they try to improve after the summer break. Meanwhile, Pierre Wache, Red Bull’s technical director, recently shared a surprising view that the team’s competitors did not close the gap sooner. He noted that the team had anticipated a stronger challenge from their rivals earlier in the season.
Reflecting on the 2022 season, Wache mentioned that Ferrari had the fastest car at the beginning, but Red Bull managed to overcome this and establish dominance. For 2023, the team expected significant competition but did not face it as anticipated. Looking ahead to 2024, Red Bull had hoped for more intense competition. Wache explained that the performance limitations under the current regulations make it challenging to gain substantial improvements. Despite this, the team expected their rivals to close the gap eventually, which started to happen after the first few races.
Red Bull Chief Details Potential For Another Max Verstappen Grid Penalty
Despite the RB20’s suitability for a low-drag track, various events hampered its plans. Sergio Perez started the race in second place but got tangled due to RB20’s balance troubles, finishing seventh. At the same time, the youngster Max Verstappen had a battle to win. The Dutchman received a ten-grid penalty because he exceeded the power unit restriction. Despite having a pole, he began at P11 and finished ahead of his colleague. This significantly narrows the distance between Red Bull and McLaren, which is presently in the 40s.
However, the RBR squad has a larger issue to address. The technical personnel must be careful of power unit consumption. The Red Bull chief was asked about a probable PU punishment for their star driver. The British executive stated that it all rests on Verstappen and the crew. It won’t be a problem if they control the engine components properly. Furthermore, Horner remains skeptical but believes the Dutchman is unlikely to face any extra sanctions.