Verstappen and Pérez are free to fight on the track

At the beginning of this season, the dominance of Red Bull is indisputable. Leading the constructors’ championship with 180 points (compared to Aston Martin’s 87 in second place), Verstappen and Pérez have also created a gap with their competitors in the drivers’ standings. Alonso, in third place, is 27 points behind the Mexican driver in second, which is more than the difference of one race.

The Mexican driver closed the gap to his teammate down to six points, after a strong weekend where he won the Sprint and the race at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. This marks his second Grand Prix victory of the season, after winning in Saudi Arabia. He now has as many Grand Prix victories as the reigning world champion, Verstappen.

Free to fight… for now

Christian Horner ensures that his two drivers have the possibility to attack on track, thanks to the superiority of their car compared to the competition, despite a reduced development capacity this year. Indeed, Red Bull was fined and had 10% of their wind tunnel time withdrawn last year for exceeding the budget cap.

“The reliability will be a key factor and what we are currently focusing on is building a buffer with both drivers, because when we return to Europe, I’m sure there will be significant updates,” he said. Since the beginning of the season, Red Bull has been spared from mechanical troubles unlike its competitors (Leclerc’s retirement in Bahrain, DRS issue for Aston Martin in Baku).”

However, the team boss expects his pursuers to narrow the gap with his two cars. Especially thanks to the various improvements that will be made during the upcoming Grand Prix. This could have an impact on the freedom granted to the two drivers: « They are free until the interests of the team – if you are competing with a rival – become more important than the interests of the drivers. But for now, they are free », assures the Austrian director.

The tensions from last season could resurface.

Based on the first four races of the season, an intra-team battle seems to be shaping up for the world title. Red Bull will need to manage tensions (and possibly incidents) that may arise throughout the 2023 championship. The relationship between Verstappen and Pérez had deteriorated towards the end of last season, reaching its peak just after the arrival of the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen, then 6th, had refused to let his teammate pass him, indicating over the radio: “We’ve already discussed this, I won’t do that kind of thing.” Perez finished 7th and didn’t mince his words over the radio when describing the attitude of his young Dutch teammate. The Mexican was fighting with Charles Leclerc for second place in the World Championship. This second place ultimately went to the Ferrari driver, with only three points ahead of Perez. Perez had notably helped Max Verstappen secure the 2021 title by slowing down Hamilton during the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and expected to receive the same treatment in return. In vain.