With nine races to go, the path to the World Title is getting stiff. After Red Bull’s humbling defeat at the hands of McLaren, the points table is open again. The Papaya squad is inching towards creating history, as Lando Norris has a real chance to outpace Max Verstappen in the WDC. Since the Miami GP, the MCL38 has been running like a clap of thunder on the tracks, courtesy of some technical advancement by the crew.
On the other hand, the RB20, regardless of a glorious past, is grappling with technical issues. The car appears severely off-pace, with the team scoring podiums solely due to Verstappen’s brilliance. However, amid all the struggles, Christian Horner has asked the team not to panic as he awaits revival.
McLaren On Verge Of Creating History As Red Bull Seeks Answers
After a 22-second defeat from Norris, Verstappen’s lead was cut short to 70 points. Meanwhile, the difference between McLaren and Red Bull has been brought down to 30 points. As a result, the RBR camp was under immense pressure as senior executives explained the reasons for its misery. However, Verstappen claimed the Dutch weekend to be a ‘bad day’ for the team. Further, he accepted that the last few weekends have been underwhelming, which is alarming. Subsequently, the Dutchman accepted it as part of the sport, asking the team to work on improvements instead of shifting to panic mode.
On the other hand, team chief Horner echoed a similar sentiment, highlighting McLaren’s failure despite its pace. During the media interaction, the Briton claimed it could be ‘very difficult’ nine races if McLaren continues to rise. However, he pointed out that Verstappen’s lead has been reduced for only the fourth time this season. Moreover, he doesn’t want the point lead to diminish further, as it could threaten the world title defence.
Further, the British executive acknowledged MCL38’s rapid pace. However, he wants the technical team to figure out the down points and fix them. Moreover, McLaren’s rise, combined with RBR’s fallback, depicts the true nature of F1, where the table can turn in a jiffy. Horner explained this phenomenon by an early season example where the F1 CEO asked the Bulls to slow down as they were winning with a 20-25 seconds margin. Therefore, despite the issues, Horner is confident things could change in their favor, as they did in McLaren’s.
Horner Urges Red Bull To Respond To McLaren’s Rapid Pace
The Milton Keynes-based outfit struggles to keep up with the Woking squad’s pace. Thus, the RBR chief has pointed out a key factor holding them back. Briton says the team needs to improve its front-wing dynamics, as they have been a key component in the rival’s rise.
He further highlighted the disparity in the front wing angle of McLaren or Mercedes compared to Red Bull. Thus, this suggests that the top teams are innovating in areas that RBR overlooks, leading to stiff competitiveness. Therefore, Horner wants his team to understand the problem, address it, and then implement fixes to gain performance.