Red Bull is now the attacker: « We no longer defend, we pursue

In an unexpected turn of events at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Red Bull lost its leading position in the Formula 1 constructors’ championship. The Austrian team, which had been dominating the sport since the Spanish Grand Prix in 2022, is now playing catch-up behind a revitalized McLaren. Red Bull’s team principal, Christian Horner, is aiming to rally his team for a counterattack. « We took a big hit in the constructors’ standings. We now have a 20-point deficit, so we need to attack »,” he said about this reversal of fortune. « There are still seven races to go, including two sprint races. There are still plenty of points to be taken and different circuits ahead, so it’s far from over ».”

Oscar Piastri’s victory for McLaren, combined with Lando Norris’ impressive climb from 15th place to 4th place in Baku, have pushed the Woking-based team ahead of Red Bull in the rankings. Horner couldn’t help but express his frustration at the turn of events, especially concerning Sergio Perez’s race. He described the outcome of the race for Perez as frustrating, emphasizing that he should have definitely been on the podium, at least in third place, probably second. He claimed that Perez could have won the race had he not lost a lot of time behind Alex Albon. He went on to explain how McLaren’s strategy played a crucial role in the race, as Lando held him off, allowing Oscar to keep his place and I think that without that, we would have been ahead of Oscar, and he would have overtaken Leclerc and everything would have gone well, it’s extremely frustrating.

Red Bull’s situation worsened in the final laps of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix when Perez was involved in a collision with Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari. Horner’s analysis of this incident left no doubt as to who was at fault: « You can clearly see that Carlos, if you use the wall as a reference and the white line on the right side of the track, you can see him looking in his rearview mirrors and moving to the left, knowing that Checo was there, and Checo doesn’t move either left or right, so it’s extremely frustrating to lose that. »

As the battle for the constructors’ title has intensified, Max Verstappen still has a comfortable lead of 59 points in the drivers’ championship over Lando Norris. However, Norris’s performance in Azerbaijan demonstrated the threat he posed to the Dutch driver. Despite a disappointing qualifying session that saw him start from the back of the grid, Norris made his way through the field during the race. Not only did he reach 4th place, but he also managed to overtake Verstappen, who had started in 6th place, and take a few points from him. For Horner, Norris’s small gain limited the damage for Red Bull. “It’s frustrating, especially after Lando’s qualifying, not to have beaten him, but fortunately, he didn’t score big points,” he said, highlighting the relatively minor impact on the drivers’ standings despite McLaren’s strong performance.

Horner also assured that team orders were clear at Red Bull. “We have a driver fighting for the world championship. It’s a team sport, so it is very clear that Checo’s role is to support Max until the end of the year.” He notably echoed McLaren’s recent statement prioritizing Lando Norris over Oscar Piastri to help him close the points gap and face Verstappen in optimal conditions. Both teams are more determined than ever and ready to implement team orders to maximize their chances for both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles.

Formula 1 arrives at Marina Bay Street Circuit for the Singapore Grand Prix this weekend, the Austrian team will now have to adopt a catch-up strategy, a role it is no longer used to. Christian Horner’s words reflected this new reality, « We are no longer defending, we are chasing. This changes the dynamics again and we will do everything in our power.

With seven races to go before the final arrival, the stage is set for an intense battle between Red Bull and McLaren, with the Formula 1 season finale shaping up to be nothing short of exciting.