Mid-season Review: Red Bull, Management Beyond the Limit?

3rd in the Constructors’ Championship: 223 pts

With three victories at mid-season, Red Bull is getting closer to its goals: competing with Mercedes and Ferrari with a smaller budget and winning races to contend for the championship. However, the Austrian team suffers from pride and neglects its engine partnership with Renault, which has led to many mechanical issues during this first part of the season.

The divorce between the team and the engine manufacturer was finally made official on June 19, the moment chosen by Red Bull to announce its new partnership with Honda, which is already powering Toro Rosso this season. As a possible consequence, Daniel Ricciardo has chosen to leave the structure that saw him rise in Formula 1 to, ironically, join Renault starting next season.

The Pilots

If he may have been uncomfortable within his team, Daniel Ricciardo still showed convincing performances on the track. With his two victories this season in China and Monaco, “The Honey Badger” decided it was time for him to leave the Red Bull ship. The images still show a good relationship between him and Max Verstappen, but was it really still the case? The clash in Azerbaijan and Verstappen’s refusal to give Ricciardo a clear track in Austria during qualifications ended the goodwill of the Australian, with the Honda choice definitively sealing his decision to leave.

One wonders if the Red Bull machine is going off the rails. With the Renault engine, the team has experienced more lows than highs since the start of the season, and the lack of adherence to the engine manufacturer’s recommendations regarding fuel and engine oil must not be unrelated. Through the voice of Cyril Abiteboul, Renault admits that its engine cannot yet compete with those of Mercedes and Ferrari, which Christian Horner insists on repeating when Red Bull’s competitiveness for the championship is mentioned.

A change is gonna come. Excited for the next chapter with @RenaultSportF1. Thank you for the kind messages and well wishes I’ve received. pic.twitter.com/2qpKYYGGvH

— Daniel Ricciardo (@danielricciardo) August 4, 2018

After a challenging start to the season marked by impatience, errors, and causing collisions, Max Verstappen still refuses to concede on any front, as demonstrated in Baku where his excessive defense to stay ahead of his teammate led to a double retirement for his team.

The young Dutchman has nevertheless regained form in Spain, with his first podium of the season (third). His victory in Austria validated his return to form.

Unbelievable! Thank you so much @redbullracing for the amazing car and strategy, and the Orange army for the incredible support 🙌🏽 This win will stay with me for the rest of my life #unleashthelion #keeppushing #AustrianGP pic.twitter.com/Y2Cub0Rfu3

— Max Verstappen (@Max33Verstappen) July 1, 2018

*: the statistic does not take into account cases of double retirement (in Bahrain and Azerbaijan here)

The rest of the season

Christian Horner and Helmut Marko will have to juggle between the team’s success, managing relationships with Renault, and negotiating to find a teammate for protégé Max Verstappen. On the track, Red Bull should continue to play the spoiler if Mercedes and Ferrari show signs of weakness, much to the delight of Daniel Ricciardo. On the transfer front, the choice is now simpler with Sainz’s departure from the Red Bull fold. Unless there is a last-minute surprise, Pierre Gasly will be the choice validated by Helmut Marko. Let’s wait for the confirmation…

🗣 “There are still nine races left in 2018 and we are fully focused on maximising every opportunity.” More 👉 https://t.co/YP9ESsaFqq #F1 pic.twitter.com/pvgFIUnUE8

— Red Bull Racing (@redbullracing) 3 août 2018