F1 legends Arnoux and Berger back Norris for the championship in a season as unpredictable as it is exhilarating.
Max Verstappen risks losing his lead in the standings before the final Formula 1 race of the season in Abu Dhabi. That’s the view of two former Grand Prix drivers and Formula 1 legends, René Arnoux and Gerhard Berger.
Arnoux, the 76-year-old former Ferrari driver, directly links Red Bull’s decline in performance to internal team turbulence. “I’ve been saying from the start that these internal issues would destabilise everyone and impact the team’s performance,” the Frenchman told La Gazzetta dello Sport. “And that’s exactly what we’ve seen.”
Lando Norris is now closing the gap in the standings almost every race weekend, although Verstappen, a triple consecutive world champion, still holds a 52-point lead with six races remaining.
“The others have progressed and found new solutions, but not Red Bull. It’s true that in the last race before the break, Verstappen may have made some progress. That’s why I’m very curious to see what will happen in Austin.”
Red Bull has indeed taken advantage of the rare three-weekend break between Singapore and the United States Grand Prix to prepare an upgrade to the car, including a new floor.
However, Arnoux believes this improvement may not be sufficient. “In theory, I think Lando can do it, although let’s be clear: 52 points is a lot. But he needs to learn to start better in his races. There’s no point in taking pole position if you then start so poorly.”
“Then we’ll have to see if Oscar [Piastri] continues to race for himself, which would make things much more difficult for Lando. But if Oscar gets in his way…”
As for Berger, historically very close to the Red Bull family, he also believes that a head-to-head between Norris and Verstappen in Abu Dhabi this December is possible.
“Max has immense potential and extensive experience, and Red Bull is solely focused on him. So I feel that, in the end, he can salvage this world championship.”
“Norris has proven himself to be an excellent driver, even if he sometimes appears a bit fragile under pressure. But the McLaren is currently the fastest car on the grid.”
Like Arnoux, Berger also believes that McLaren’s team orders strategy will be crucial.
“It’s time for the team to make a choice and support Lando as much as possible. Until now, they’ve concentrated on both drivers, who still have a mathematical chance of winning the title, but in doing so, Piastri has ended up taking points from his teammate.”
“If the drivers’ championship is decided by a few points, McLaren will regret decisions like those in Hungary or Monza.”
Regarding Red Bull’s mid-season dip in performance, Berger admitted that at the start of the season, he predicted it would be a “boring” championship dominated by Verstappen.
“Instead, the opposite is happening. The reason is that the team has entered a negative spiral and lost its composure. Regaining that harmony won’t be easy.”
“For years, they have relied on Adrian Newey as their technical reference, but now they have new engineers who have yet to prove they deserve to succeed him.”
“In recent months, many engineers have left the team, and that’s also a reason for its weakening. But if, despite everything, Max manages to win the world championship, I think Red Bull will have enough time to reorganise.”
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Formula 1’s Unpredictable Season Reaches Thrilling Crescendo Formula 1’s Unpredictable Season Reaches Thrilling Crescendo
