Red Bull faced unexpected tyre degradation in the China Sprint, forcing the team to rethink strategy ahead of the Grand Prix.
Red Bull left the Chinese Sprint race with serious concerns about tyre degradation, revealing just how much it shook up their weekend strategy.
During the Saturday Sprint, Max Verstappen fought hard for the lead but saw his tyres quickly lose grip. Team Principal Christian Horner admitted it triggered alarm bells within the team.
“He was pushing to take the lead in the first half of the Sprint, but then we had serious tyre degradation,” Horner said. “That definitely influenced how we approached the Grand Prix itself.”
Red Bull feared chaos before calm China GP turnaround
Red Bull made overnight changes to the car ahead of Sunday’s race — and it paid off. But Horner confessed that what they saw on Saturday made them doubt whether a one-stop strategy was even an option.
“We made some setup tweaks and the car improved, no doubt. But I think we scared ourselves a bit with how quickly the tyres dropped off in that first stint,” he explained.
“Going into the race, we had a clear plan — but it turned out the actual conditions were totally different. Honestly, based on Saturday’s data, I don’t think any team believed a one-stop was possible. In the end, it turned out to be fairly straightforward.”
Looking ahead to the next race in Japan, Horner remained cautious. Red Bull is still evaluating its overall performance picture.
“Who knows what to expect? It depends on what the others bring,” he said. “We know which areas we need to improve, and we’ll keep pushing. We’ll see where we stand in two weeks.”
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Red Bull rocked by tyre wear fears after China Sprint Red Bull rocked by tyre wear fears after China Sprint
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