Red Bull Steady Despite McLaren s Swift Rise

Waché Calm as Red Bull Faces McLaren Surge

06/07/2024

Despite McLaren’s progress, Pierre Waché ensures Red Bull remains composed with no rush to panic.

Despite the departure of Adrian Newey and increasingly competitive rivals, Pierre Waché, the technical director of Red Bull, insists there is “no panic” within the once-dominant team.

Having utterly dominated the new ground effect era since 2022, Ferrari, Mercedes, and particularly McLaren are now closer than ever—with Lando Norris even emerging as a potential title contender if this upward trend continues.

The team’s consultant, Dr. Helmut Marko, recently acknowledged that technical upgrades and car tuning were experiencing issues with correlation between the simulator and the track.

“It appears that particularly McLaren’s, and to some extent Mercedes’, development has been successful,” Waché admits at Silverstone.

“McLaren has made a significant leap forward since early May in Miami. It’s true that others have closed the gap and we must introduce developments that can ensure we regain the lead we had.”

Red Bull opted for an upgrade at Silverstone, though Max Verstappen is the only Red Bull driver using the new floor. In the first two practice sessions yesterday, Norris’s McLaren was clearly ahead.

“It’s very important that we see the new update gives us time per lap, as this also influences our future plans.”

“It’s quite simple: in the past weeks, we have not always been dominant. But there is no reason to hit the panic button just now.”

“We can accelerate things, but panicking is not the right attitude. We are working with 300 engineers. If you then change your mind every five minutes, that’s not the right way to proceed.”

Waché says that one of the issues is that, having mastered the ground effect rules so early, Red Bull is now reaching the development limit of the concept.

“The regulations have been the same for a few years now and there are many restrictions, so we are doing a lot of work for only small gains.”

“However, I believe we can continue to develop this car and we can still find a lot—everything is relative—of performance in the coming period.”

Red Bull Steady Despite McLaren s Swift Rise

Red Bull Steady Despite McLaren’s Swift Rise. Red Bull Steady Despite McLaren’s Swift Rise

F1 Standings 2025
F1 Standings 2025
#
Driver
Points
1
Driver Flag
Max Verstappen
Red Bull
0
2
Driver Flag
Lando Norris
McLaren
0
3
Driver Flag
Charles Leclerc
Ferrari
0
4
Driver Flag
Oscar Piastri
McLaren
0
5
Driver Flag
Carlos Sainz
Williams
0
6
Driver Flag
George Russell
Mercedes
0
#
Team
Points
1
McLaren
Norris & Piastri
0
2
Ferrari
Leclerc & Hamilton
0
3
Red Bull
Verstappen & Lawson
0
4
Mercedes
Russell & Antonelli
0
5
Aston Martin
Alonso & Stroll
0
6
Alpine
Gasly & Doohan
0
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