Christian Horner rules out Red Bull superiority in the future amidst F1’s ‘cultural change’
Christian Horner thinks it'll be tough to sustain Red Bull's dominance this season due to F1's cultural shift and restricted development time.
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Red Bull team principal Christian Horner (Credits: Sports Pro Media)
Christian Horner, the Team Principal of Red Bull Racing, has expressed concern that the cultural change in Formula One will make it harder for his team to maintain its advantage over rivals. Despite a strong start to the 2023 season, where Red Bull has taken pole position and won all three races so far, Horner acknowledges that his team faces a challenging situation due to the introduction of the cost cap and restrictions on wind tunnel and CFD usage.
In Melbourne after the , Christian Horner said: “I think it will be very tough for us to develop this car because when you look at the amount of percentage time less we have compared to some of our rivals, it’s significant. But it is what it is. We just have to do the best we can with what we’ve got, be efficient, effective, and selective in what we choose to develop, and how we apportion our time.”
Horner went on to explain that “It’s been a total cultural change over the last couple of years. It’s a new challenge in Formula 1, how you apply your resources. It used to be a sprint in terms of developing a car as quickly as you could with whatever budget you can rustle up.” Horner explained, “Now it’s a question of how and where do you apply your resources, and of course, there are so many variables like crash damage, accident damage in there that can have a massive effect on your potential to develop. It’s going to be interesting to see how it pans out this year.”
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Horner is optimistic about his team’s chances and expects the inter-team battle between Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez to continue without issues. “They are two competitive drivers, the relationship is fine, there is a good respect between the two of them. They both know the responsibility they have driving for the team. Some expectations come with that, but they’re in a good place. They’ve been a very effective pairing for us, and I expect that to continue,” said Horner.
Red Bull has started the 2023 season with three consecutive victories and is looking to repeat as champion. However, the team faces a fine for violating the cost cap restrictions in the 2021 season. The Milton Keynes outfit must carefully consider its development plan in light of the new requirements. Although Red Bull won 17 of the previous 22 races and is showing good results this season, they will need to use their resources properly to preserve their supremacy under the new restrictions.
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Rohit Bhaskar
(727 Articles Published)