Ex-Red Bull driver claims Max Verstappen needs to ‘really work’ to win 2024 F1 title

Max Verstappen has continued to score victories despite Red Bull's waning form in the 2024 season.

Ex-Red Bull driver claims Max Verstappen needs to ‘really work’ to win 2024 F1 title

Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)

Red Bull enjoyed the comfort of a highly dominant chassis since the beginning of the ground-effect era. Milton Keynes got the upper hand over the competition early on in the previous seasons and had to face little to no resistance. However, the 2024 season is a shift of pace for the team as they no longer have the fastest chassis on the grid. David Coulthard reckoned that the Austrian constructor would have to work extra hard for the title to come to Max Verstappen this time around.

A majority of the drivers are bunched up in the forefront with very close lap times during the sessions. Max Verstappen is no longer winning races with a dominant lead of over 40s and more. Hence, David Coulthard, having previously driven for Red Bull mentioned that everyone got closer to Milton Keynes. Additionally, the 53-year-old noted that Verstappen had to really work hard for the race victories.

Everyone has got closer to Red Bull. We’ve seen therefore, Checo [Perez], who has been on average two or three-tenths slower than Max, has started to slip towards the back end of the top 10. So Max is having to really work to get those victories.
David Coulthard said on the Channel 4 (H&T: planetf1.com).
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Apart from this, the Briton reckoned that this trend will continue to shift according to different racing circuits. Some tracks would favor the Austrian constructor while others wouldn’t provide the best possible opportunity for Verstappen. Regardless, the Dutchman won’t have a ‘slam dunk’ championship victory in the 2024 season as per Coulthard.

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This is going to continue to ebb and flow depending on whether the track suits your car, whether your development profile is working for you throughout the remainder of the season. “So I don’t think it’s a slam dunk that this is Max Verstappen’s World Championship.
David Coulthard added.

Max Verstappen revealed Red Bull ‘lost’ the highly dominant car in the 2024 season

The RB20 was supposed to take in multiple learnings from the rocketship RB19. However, the major changes to the chassis saw a massive dip in performance. Milton Keynes had to work extremely hard to score impressive race wins. Verstappen highlighted that the team was aware of the dip in performance in the 2024 season.

Christian Horner and Max Verstappen
Christian Horner and Max Verstappen (Via: Imago)

He mentioned that Red Bull was ‘awake’ over the issues faced by the team. Hence, the team needed to push on and bring in better and faster parts to the chassis. Additionally, the Dutchman recalled the previous season and how the team lost out on the highly dominant car since then.

I think we are pretty much very awake already with what’s happening. We need to push on, we need to bring parts faster, better. We had a very dominant car last year. That is completely gone, naturally, and we just need to really try and make a step ahead again.
Max Verstappen said, as reported by planetf1.com.

Max Verstappen has still continued to defy the odds and continue to score impressive race wins. The Dutchman has a great lead in the drivers’ championship and will continue to fend off against the rivals. However, Milton Keynes will have to keep up with the in-season upgrades to gain control over the rival team’s upgrading pace.

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