Red Bull held a meeting with Max Verstappen following the Chinese Grand Prix to reassure him over their development plans.
The world champion has begun his title defence on the back foot as Lando Norris pulled eight points clear of him over the opening three rounds.
He finished fourth in China, behind the McLaren drivers and George Russell. Although he was encouraged by the car’s pace at the end of the stint, Verstappen said he lost too much time in the opening stint.
“The beginning was not easy, I just tried to drive to the pace we set out to do, but that is of course not at the same level as the cars ahead,” he told the official F1 channel. “The medium [tyre compound] was probably a bit more difficult.”
During the race Verstappen told his team he could have driven quicker during his opening, 13-lap stint on the medium rubber.
“On the hard tyre, from that second-half phase, we seemed a bit more competitive, more promising at least. That was at least enjoyable, trying to catch the cars ahead, having a bit of a fight as well.
“I think we’ll take that as a positive that there is pace in the car at some point. We just need to understand probably a bit more why it didn’t happen in the beginning and why at the end of the race it was better.”
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Red Bull motorsport consultant Helmut Marko said the team had a productive meeting with Verstappen this week.
“After returning from China, a meeting took place in Milton Keynes where we explored how and when RBR would have a winning car again,” Marko told Red Bull-owned publication Speed Week. “It was a good conversation between Max and the engineers. We were able to show Verstappen the general development direction of the race car and what specific improvements are being made to the car.”
Marko said the RB21 has shown potential but has clear flaws. “We’re behind McLaren, the car is difficult to drive, and the set-up isn’t exactly straightforward either,” he said.
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“But we saw in the second part of the race in China: If things go well, like Verstappen did at the end of the race, now on hard tyres, he can drive as fast as or even faster than the leader. In fairness, though, I have to add – leader Piastri certainly wasn’t going full speed.
“Our mistake came with the medium [compound] tyres in the first part of the race in China. Max was too cautious there, based on his experiences from the only free practice session and also from the sprint, when the front tyres degraded very early. Verstappen still had that in mind. In retrospect, he could have pushed harder.”
Yesterday Red Bull made the shock announcement it has replaced Verstappen’s team mate, Liam Lawson, for the upcoming race in Japan. Marko said “mistakes crept in” Lawson’s driving after he was unable to drive in final practice at the Australian Grand Prix.
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“This trend continued in China. We had to act before Liam completely lost his confidence. In this context, we must not forget – his career isn’t over. He’s back driving for Racing Bulls, a team with a car that’s always capable of scoring points, a car that’s also significantly easier to drive and ultimately, a team where he won’t be measured against Max Verstappen.
“Another problem, and one that Sergio Perez, with all his experience, had to deal with in 2024: the Red Bull Racing car, with its narrow optimal operating range, is a difficult car to drive. On top of that, we’re two to three tenths of a second behind the frontrunners, which makes it even more difficult.”
Marko insisted Red Bull’s early driver change “is nothing unusual – we’ve done it before with Pierre Gasly and Alex Albon, and both are still established drivers in Formula 1, with successful careers.”
Red Bull has promoted Yuki Tsunoda to Lawson’s seat, having passed him over for promotion at the end of last year. “Of course, there are many know-it-alls who will now object: Why wasn’t Tsunoda given preference from the start?
“This is because Yuki’s career often had ups and downs; he didn’t exactly have the image of reliability and consistency. But now he’s made a leap in his development, including in terms of physical preparation – Tsunoda is now a real muscleman.
“Yuki delivered impressive performances over the first two race weekends. So what distinguished Lawson in the second half of the 2024 season, we now see in Yuki.”
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He dismissed speculation Red Bull’s engine designer Honda pushed for Tsunoda to join the team ahead of the race his home event at their Suzuka circuit.
“The fact that this change of position and promotion for Honda protege Tsunoda came about just before his home race in Japan and on Honda’s home track is a coincidence,” he said. “It certainly helps that Yuki knows this racetrack well, but it also applies to Lawson. That wasn’t the deciding factor.”
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2025 Chinese Grand Prix
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