Max Verstappen surprised by how ‘quickly’ rivals caught up with Red Bull in 2024
Max Verstappen has not won a race in more than four races.
Max Verstappen (via IMAGO)
Red Bull dominated the 2023 season and created history as the team won 21 races and lost only one. Continuing its momentum into 2024, the Austrian giant was anticipated to recreate its highly successful season. However, with the first half of the season ending, rivals have caught up to the Milton Keynes-based outfit, leaving Max Verstappen surprised.
Max Verstappen has been the mighty force in F1. The Dutchman has won more than three dozen races in the last three years. However, with the team’s race win streak coming to an abrupt halt, Red Bull has found itself in a championship threat from McLaren and Mercedes.
This left the Dutchman shocked as his lead in the championship is diminishing with Lando Norris catching up to him at the rate of knots.
I realised we’ll never have a season again we had last year. It's very rare that you had these kind of seasons in a row, so I was always prepared for it, but I just didn’t think it’ll be so quickly to have that kind of swing in performance compared to the other teams.Max Verstappen said on F1TV
The reigning champion admitted that he did not expect to recreate his 2023 success, but he later accepted that a swing in performance this drastic left him surprised. Moreover, this statement was renounced in the paddock as experts were left flattered by McLaren’s rapid pace in comparison to championship leaders.
Would Max Verstappen face another grid penalty for exceeding engine components allocation?
Verstappen took a 10-place grid penalty for the Belgian GP as he exceeded his engine component allocation for the season. Despite this, he extended his lead in the driver’s championship and hoped for a better weekend after the summer break.
However, Christian Horner seemed cautious while commenting on the matter.
It depends on what happens to the pool, so we think we're okay at the moment.Christian Horner said in an interview with GPBlog
The Brit explained that Red Bull would take all factors into account before concluding anything. However, he reckoned that his team was safe from such obstacles during the second half of the season.
Despite their optimism, the pecking order has closed up tremendously, which has significantly reduced their advantage in the constructor’s standings over the past two races. Thus, a close battle is brewing between McLaren and Red Bull for the top spot in the standings with Ferrari lurking in the background increasing the chaos at the sharp end.
In case you missed it:
- Fernando Alonso ‘disappointed’ to be ‘fighting’ against backmarkers in the 2024 F1 season
- Liberty Media reportedly behind Red Bull not sacking Sergio Perez amidst fears of Mexican GP revenue loss
Geetansh Pasricha
(772 Articles Published)