Christian Horner has acknowledged that Red Bull is facing significant pressure to rectify their performance issues following a challenging 2024 Italian Grand Prix.
The team principal candidly discussed the situation with various media outlets, including Sportskeeda, highlighting how both Ferrari and McLaren played a role in limiting the damage Red Bull suffered at Monza.
According to Horner, without Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc winning the race and denying McLaren a victory, Red Bull and Max Verstappen could have lost even more points in the drivers’ championship.
Furthermore, the intra-team battle between McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris also worked in Red Bull’s favor, helping them salvage some points from what was otherwise a disappointing weekend.
In the constructors’ championship, the gap between Red Bull and their closest rivals has narrowed to just eight points, while in the drivers’ championship, Max Verstappen still maintains a 60-point lead.
However, these margins are far from comfortable for the reigning champions. Verstappen could only manage a sixth-place finish, while his teammate Sergio Perez finished eighth, raising concerns about the team’s performance on circuits like Monza, which may have exposed some critical weaknesses in their car.
Throughout the Italian Grand Prix weekend, both Red Bull drivers struggled with balance issues, which hampered their performance. As the team looks ahead to the upcoming races in Baku and Singapore, which are street circuits known for their unique challenges, the pressure to resolve these issues during the two-week break is mounting. When asked by Sportskeeda about the level of pressure Red Bull is under as they head into the next two rounds, Horner was candid in his response.
“Of course, we are under pressure to turn it around, and nobody puts ourselves under more pressure than ourselves,” Horner stated. “Because finishing sixth hurts. The reality was Ferrari helped us out a little bit today, as did the fighting between the two McLaren drivers. Otherwise, in the drivers’ championship, there could have been another chunk of points taken out of us.”
Reflecting on Red Bull’s performance throughout the Italian GP weekend, Horner admitted that the pace they displayed was not up to their usual standards. “With the pace that we had today, both championships will absolutely be under pressure for sure, so we have to turn the situation around very quickly,” he said. “I think this circuit has exposed the deficiencies that we have in the car compared to last year. And I think that we have a very clear issue which was highlighted this weekend that we know we have to get on top of and address. Otherwise, we put ourselves under massive pressure.”
One of the key takeaways from Horner’s comments was his belief that the Monza circuit exposed Red Bull’s weaknesses more than any other track on the calendar. According to Horner, the team has been able to mask some of their car’s balance issues at other circuits by running higher downforce setups. However, Monza’s unique characteristics—its high-speed straights and low downforce requirements—revealed the RB20’s flaws more starkly.
“I think on other tracks, perhaps running more downforce helps hide some of the balance issues that we have, but at Monza, you could see that we’ve got a disconnection, an imbalance that just isn’t working,” Horner explained. “As soon as you end up in that situation, you’re harder on the tires, you end up compensating, you move the balance around, you secure one problem, but you create another, so you just end up in a vicious circle.”
Horner further elaborated on the specific issues plaguing their car, emphasizing that balance is the primary concern. “I think it’s more about balance. I think 100% it’s balance. We haven’t got a connection between the front and rear,” he noted. “Max can’t lean on the rear on the way into the corner, nor can Checo. And when you try to compensate for that, you create understeer. It’s such a fine line, and you can see it in qualifying. On a scrubbed tire with a balance, we could do a 1:19.6 that matched the best times. Then we put two new sets of tires on, the balance is completely out, and we go four and a half tenths slower.”
The constructors’ championship is now more competitive than ever, with small margins separating Red Bull, McLaren, and Ferrari. With three sprint race weekends still to come in the remaining eight rounds of the calendar, these small gaps could close rapidly, putting Red Bull’s title defense at risk. Currently, the Milton Keynes squad is just eight points ahead of the Woking-based McLaren team, while Ferrari is 31 points behind McLaren and 39 points behind Red Bull. Given the nature of the upcoming circuits in Baku and Singapore, which could play to the strengths of McLaren and Ferrari, Red Bull faces a race against time to address their performance issues.
As the team heads into this critical phase of the season, the pressure is on to find solutions quickly. Horner’s comments suggest that Red Bull is acutely aware of the challenges they face, but they remain determined to rise to the occasion. Whether they can turn things around in time to defend their championships remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: the competition is closing in, and Red Bull cannot afford to let their guard down. The next few races will be crucial in determining whether Red Bull can maintain their dominance or if they will be dethroned by their rivals.
