Winning Red Bull wondering what happened to ‘under-performing’ rivals, says Christian Horner

Red Bull's team principal Christian Horner said that he expected convergence from rivals later in the year. PHOTO: AFP

MIAMI – Team principal Christian Horner said Red Bull’s total dominance of Formula One this season is mainly due to the failings of their rivals Mercedes and Ferrari, rather than any big steps forward from his team.

Red Bull’s two-time world champion Max Verstappen won his third race of the season with victory in the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday, with teammate Sergio Perez finishing second.

Aston Martin’s third-placed Fernando Alonso was 26.305 seconds behind Verstappen, who started ninth on the grid.

“Definitely the pace advantage, I think, is quite big at the moment,” said the Dutch driver.

Red Bull have won all five races and had four one-two finishes this season, leading some to worry the sport is becoming too predictable.

But while this is Red Bull’s best-ever start to an F1 season, Horner doesn’t want to take too much credit for his team.

“We feel that we’ve made a good step from the (previous car) but the kind of step that you would expect. It’s more that it feels like others have lost ground,” said Horner.

The Englishman said that he has been surprised by the lack of competitiveness of the rivals.

“I think it surprised us that the others have perhaps under-delivered compared to where they were last year, but no doubt they will be looking to address that, and I’m sure starting in Imola we’re going to see big updates starting to come through,” he said.

Horner said those updates for the next race could see “big gains” for the likes of Ferrari and Mercedes but he was clearly keen to put some pressure on them, taking aim again in his post-race interview with Sky Sports.

“We are wondering: ‘Where are the others?’ We have made a normal step over the winter. Where did Ferrari and Mercedes go?” he asked.

Horner said the International Automobile Federation (FIA) sanctions against Red Bull for breaching the cost cap, which limited their testing ability, meant their updates would likely come online later in the season.

Despite Verstappen and Perez being in a league of their own this season and Red Bull already 122 points clear in the constructors’ championship, Horner said much remained to be fought for.

“We’ve got a great car, we’ve got a great team, we’ve got two great drivers, but still a long way to go,” he said. “Let’s reserve judgment until after we see what it turns out to be at Imola, (Monaco) and Barcelona.”

Struggling Mercedes enjoyed better-than-expected results in Miami with George Russell finishing fourth and Lewis Hamilton sixth but the team were quick to dampen expectations about upgrades, expected to be delivered in time for the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola on May 21.

“There are a lot of expectations on Imola but at the end of the day, we finished 30-odd seconds behind the leaders today,” said Russell.

“I am sure it is going to take a step in the right direction but it is not going to transform things. Let’s hope it does. The car is a little unpredictable at the moment... It is going to be a long journey.”

Meanwhile, the Miami GP is considering a switch to becoming a night race, Tom Garfinkel, the event’s managing partner, said on Sunday.

He said that talks were ongoing with F1 management about options for the future and said a night race was one item on the agenda. “We’ve had some discussions about potentially doing that,” Garfinkel said.

He indicated that the intense heat of 2022 had contributed to the idea.

“At this time of year, the weather is a little unpredictable,” he said. “This year is pretty nice and the breeze has helped a lot, but last year was unseasonably hot.”

Moving the race to the night would, however, have an impact on European television ratings, given it would be broadcast well after midnight.

“There are a lot of factors that go into that (decision) with F1 and television and everything else. So, we’ve got to weigh all those things. But we’re certainly open-minded to it,” he said.

The new Las Vegas Grand Prix in November will be a night race and F1 also races after dark in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Singapore. AFP, REUTERS

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