“We are making progress; we haven’t reached parity yet.”
These remarks from Max Verstappen came in response to McLaren’s team principal, Andrea Stella, stating that a “highly competitive environment” now features four distinct teams. This followed a promising Miami Grand Prix outing for Red Bull, where Mercedes emerged victorious and Ferrari also demonstrated strong contention.
Isack Hadjar endured a terrible race weekend, falling significantly short of Verstappen’s speed, which was compounded by his disqualification from qualifying due to illicit car underbodies and his retirement from the main race on the fifth lap after an accident.
Despite this, the Dutch driver managed to secure a fifth-place finish in the sprint race and subsequently earned a starting position on the front row for the primary event, only to conclude it in fifth place once more following a spin on the initial lap.
“We have undeniably made significant advancements,” expressed team principal Laurent Mekies with satisfaction. “In Japan, we were 1.2 seconds shy of pole position, and in China, that gap was 1.0 second. Our rivals were not pausing their own upgrade efforts, so every team has been enhancing their vehicles. However, we recognized that beyond the ongoing development competition, we also needed to address some inherent problems, and we were confident that performance gains could be found there.”
Laurent Mekies, Red Bull Racing Team Principal
Photo by: Chris Graythen / Getty Images
“Therefore, witnessing our qualifying performance this weekend, being six tenths behind pole on Friday and less than two tenths on Saturday, provides a strong indication of the extent of our advancement. The exact magnitude of this improvement remains uncertain, but relative to our previous standing, it represents a far superior outcome than anything we have achieved throughout this year.
“Our pace during the race proved robust, corroborating the positive indications observed during qualifying. While not sufficient to contend for first or second positions, it potentially positioned us within a battle for third, fourth, or fifth place. This, once more, showcased capabilities we had not yet demonstrated this season. This considerable leap forward is a testament to the dedication of everyone at Milton Keynes.”
Mekies’ assessment holds true. The Miami event signified the initial instance where a Red Bull entry achieved a closer proximity to pole position compared to Hadjar’s 0.785-second shortfall recorded in Melbourne; additionally, this was the second occasion the squad emerged as the ‘leading contender’ after Mercedes.
| Gap to pole position | Gap to best non-Mercedes | |
 Australia |
0.785s | 0.000s |
 China |
0.938s | 0.587s |
 Japan |
1.200s | 0.846s |
 Miami |
0.166s | 0.000s |
Hadjar’s showing at Albert Park stemmed partially from discovering an effective car configuration, whereas the vehicle operated outside its optimal performance range in China and Japan, resulting in being outqualified by the three other leading teams, in addition to Pierre Gasly of Alpine.
During the Miami Grand Prix, Red Bull benefited from an extensive suite of enhancements, including a revised floor, engine cover, sidepod intake, and updated front and rear wings, among other components. These modifications performed precisely as anticipated by the team, as verified by technical director Pierre Wache in a statement to Autosport.
Regarding the pace exhibited during the race, Verstappen’s final 44-second gap to the leader at the finish line scarcely reflected his true capability; he completed the inaugural lap in ninth position after his rotation, and his singular pit stop during the initial safety car phase demoted him to 16th place. This set the stage for an extensive 51-lap duration on hard compound tires, throughout which he executed an impressive ten overtakes.
Despite these improvements, an air of excessive self-assurance is absent within Red Bull, as the team anticipates further enhancements, such as components designed to reduce weight, which might be unveiled around the time of the Austrian Grand Prix towards the end of June.
“Understandably, we haven’t yet perfected every aspect we aimed for,” stated Mekies. “Thus, in terms of our own internal targets, there’s additional performance we intend to extract from our current vehicle package. Furthermore, we are aware that the engineering competition will persist, and our rivals will introduce their own advancements in upcoming races.”
Further contributions provided by Stuart Codling
