Max Verstappen demands progress from Red Bull by 2025
Despite winning a fourth consecutive world title, the Dutchman experienced a more difficult second half of the season in a less efficient single-seater. In his opinion, if this trend continues in 2025, the Austrian team will not win a single title.
**Will 2025 be similar to 2014?** After four consecutive world titles between 2010 and 2013, Sebastian Vettel seemed untouchable. However, the introduction of new engine regulations shook up the grid, propelling Mercedes to the team to beat. The German couldn’t defend his chances and ended the season without a single victory.
Red Bull threatened by Ferrari and McLaren
Even if the next season doesn’t bring a major revolution, the result could be similar. If Max Verstappen has indeed won a new world title, the competition is becoming increasingly tight and McLaren as well as Ferrari seem to have taken the upper hand on Red Bull.
While he had won seven of the first twelve races, the Dutch driver then crossed the finish line in first position only twice in the following twelve Grand Prix races. This statistic reflects the decline observed at Red Bull this season, with a car increasingly less suited to the drivers of the Austrian team. This opened the door to other teams, like McLaren, which was able to win its first constructors’ championship since 1998.
No progress, no title in 2025 according to Verstappen
Speaking recently during an interview with the Dutch newspaper The Telegraaf, Max Verstappen was realistic about his chances in 2025: if the car doesn’t improve, he won’t be champion.
« If we continue like this, I won’t be champion next year. It’s as simple as that. We really need to improve to be competitive next season. Everyone knows it », admitted the former Toro Rosso driver, who nevertheless remains confident in his team to solve the issues encountered this season.
« I trust the team to solve last year’s balance issues. Some things we couldn’t adjust will be changed for next year. We know we need to be better on the curbs, bumps, and in slow corners. These are generally our weak points. »
A better understanding of the single-seater after Monza
The Dutchman also reflected on the Italian Grand Prix, a significant milestone in Red Bull’s season, undoubtedly representing the lowest point of the year (Verstappen and Pérez had finished 6th and 8th, respectively). « At one point, the car was almost undrivable. There was nothing more to be gained from it. »
However, it was after this race that Verstappen was able to identify the issues with the car, allowing the development of the RB20 to get back on track. All the plans for new parts, which were supposed to arrive after this race in Monza, could be thrown away. The team started from scratch after that. Before that, they couldn’t find the exact problem.
By analyzing the data, Verstappen played a key role in detecting the aerodynamic flaws of the car. « I saw some charts when we were analyzing the data. I noticed some aerodynamic shifts in the way we entered and turned in the corners, as well as in terms of ride height. It was different compared to last year’s car. »
« I said: ‘Well, it’s very clear that this and that is the problem, isn’t it?’ It turned out I was right, as I was later confirmed. I had never seen those lines and graphs before. I then said it was quite obvious what we needed to work on. »
Lessons to learn for next season
For Verstappen, these balance issues are not new. They were simply masked by Red Bull’s comfortable lead over its competitors at the beginning of the season.
At the beginning of last season, we were still winning our races with a certain margin, but I already felt that the car’s balance wasn’t what I wanted. But, at that time, we still had a big lead over the other teams, who may not have had a very good winter.
The four-time world champion also mentioned his rivals, claiming that they had benefited from certain tricks to catch up with Red Bull in terms of performance. Things happened behind the scenes that left us with absolutely no chance in certain races. I know this for sure, but no one will ever admit it.
If his fourth world title was indeed won this season, the competition in 2025 promises to be tighter than ever. Even though the Dutchman has proven he can win races without having the fastest car, Red Bull’s regression remains a source of concern.
Will Max Verstappen be able to match Michael Schumacher by winning a fifth consecutive title? The 2025 season promises to be exciting. See you on March 16 for the first Grand Prix in Australia.
