Red Bull at the break: Exponential

We were expecting them in this new season and they are showing up. The Red Bull team has had a very impressive first part of the championship, with a lead of 97 points over their closest rival, Ferrari. Thanks to the performances of their drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez, who are currently 1st and 2nd in the standings, the team can almost taste the title.

The best race.

It was during the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix that the team demonstrated their best performance this season. By achieving a first double since 2016, with Verstappen-Pérez finishing in that order, the team scored 58 points in one go out of a possible 59 in this race.

The worst race

It is obvious that the least successful race this season is the first one at the Bahrain Grand Prix. In this Grand Prix, both drivers were forced to retire just a few laps before the end. Both cars experienced a technical failure in the engine, which led to their retirement.

A progression?

We can’t really talk about progression as the team is consistently performing in terms of results. We can see a level of consistency that is not necessarily seen in other teams, like Ferrari for example.

The two drivers often rank in the top 10, and even in the top 5, in each Grand Prix, except for a few races marked by retirements or less successful performances. We can also see from the qualifying sessions and grid positions that Red Bull is a very good constructor, with both drivers consistently securing top 5 positions in every Grand Prix.

Red Bull logically leads the constructors’ standings, well ahead of the others.

Reliability compared to the rest of the field.

Despite the overall good results, Red Bull experienced some issues and retirements, particularly in the opening race, where neither of the Austrian cars reached the finish line. Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez had a total of five retirements, two for one and three for the other. After the Bahrain Grand Prix and the retirements of both drivers, Verstappen retired in Australia while Perez withdrew in Canada. The Hungarian Grand Prix revealed engine and gearbox problems for the world champion.

Pilots’ duel

After his championship title in 2021, Max Verstappen once again proves himself with a first place finish in this half-season. With 8 wins out of 13 possible races this season, the driver stands out and finds himself comfortably in the lead of the championship. He boasts an 85% top 10 record and a 77% top 3 record in the Grand Prix.

Results that come after good qualifications, in which he almost always ends up in the top 5 on the starting grid. Even when he starts further back, he still manages to make up for the delay and earn more points, as we saw in the Hungarian Grand Prix where he started from 10th place and ended up winning the race.

Sergio Perez is not left behind. He won the Monaco Grand Prix and regularly ranks in the top 5, even in the top 3. He finished in the top 3 46% of the time and in the top 5 77% of the time.

During the qualifications, the Mexican driver struggles more but still manages to finish generally in the top 5 (69%). He often manages to maintain the same momentum between the qualifications and the Grand Prix.

Between the two drivers, we can see a clear advantage for Verstappen who generally finishes ahead of Perez, both in qualifying and in the Grand Prix. Here is a summary table of their encounters.

Championship position

Here is the ranking of the constructors at the mid-season, led by Red Bull.

At mid-season, Red Bull is comfortably leading the championship with almost a 100-point advantage over Ferrari. The title seems more than promised to them, and the chances of seeing them snatch the crown from Mercedes are nearly certain.