Horner: Red Bull struggles with race pace in Austin

Christian Horner admits Red Bull’s race pace issues while applauding Norris’s penalty, urging investigation into their Austin performance.

Christian Horner praised Ferrari’s 1-2 finish in Austin on Sunday. The Red Bull team principal explained the limitations of the RB20 on the Texas track and what caused issues. However, he acknowledged Max Verstappen’s performance while backing the stewards’ decision.

“First of all, congratulations to Ferrari, they had a great race from the start, and it was a well-deserved victory for them. As for us, we lost pace compared to Saturday, so we need to reflect on that and figure it out,” said Horner.

“We were limited by the front end rather than the rear. That changed, and I’m not sure if it was due to temperature or a setup change we made after the Sprint. As I said, we’ll have to look into it.”

“Max drove brilliantly and defended well. There was clearly an issue towards the end of the race, but the rules are very clear on this situation, and the stewards reacted quickly, as all teams expect them to.”

“All in all, there are many positives to take from Austin. The team did a great job bouncing back after Singapore, but we still have a long way to go. But to outscore our main rival in the drivers’ championship by five points over the weekend isn’t too bad!”

Horner also had kind words for Liam Lawson, who finished 9th in his return in the RB F1.

“He jumped into the race and looked like a veteran, to be honest with you. He’s a great driver and can be very proud of his performance. I think he had a fantastic Grand Prix. He started 19th, finished in the points, and pulled off some great overtakes. He should be pleased with that.”

And Sergio Pérez? While Horner briefly mentioned him, it was mainly to highlight “another challenging race” and shift focus to the next event, but the silence about the Mexican’s performance in Austin was deafening. Pérez’s race clearly did not inspire his team leaders.

“Now, we turn our attention to Mexico, Checo’s home race, where we hope to build on what we achieved here and keep pushing in the right direction.”