When Verstappen won his seventh race of the season at the Spain Grand Prix, the Netherlands' lead in the drivers' championship extended to 69 points, and Red Bull Racing built a 60-point lead in the constructors' championship.
Just as everyone lamented the absolute dominance of Red Bull Racing and Verstappen on the Formula 1 circuit, the team of kings and defending champions collapsed without warning. At the Azerbaijan Grand Prix that ended last weekend, Verstappen was bullied again by Norris on the track after a last-minute collision with Sainz and finished fifth, and when Piastri stood on the top podium, the situation in F1 changed completely this season.
At present, in the constructors' standings, Red Bull Racing, which has been in the leading position, was officially overtaken by McLaren Racing, which is currently 20 points behind McLaren in the constructors' standings, falling to second place, and only 31 points behind Ferrari, such a picture is unimaginable in the first half of the season.
Including the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Red Bull Racing and Verstappen are now seven races without a win, and the best result during this period is only Verstappen's second place finish at home to the Netherlands Grand Prix. Judging by the performances of Red Bull Racing and Verstappen in recent times, the defending champions are indeed out of competition on the track.
In response to the team's poor recent situation, Red Bull principal Horner spoke to the media yesterday about the reasons why the team is struggling. "We traced the history and found that the first mistake occurred during the chassis upgrade in Barcelona in 2023," Horner said. It was also the race where Pérez's car started to have problems. We didn't take it too seriously at the time because Verstappen won that race. ”
It turns out that the hidden danger of Red Bull Racing has been buried as early as a year ago, because the lack of upgrades to the racing chassis and a series of improper operations have led to the competitiveness of the Red Bull Mars rover is constantly weakening. Especially with the gradual development of competitive cars by competitors, and the recent public admission of Red Bull boss Newey to Aston Martin Racing, the loss of the soul of racing design, Red Bull Racing's development and upgrading are naturally in trouble.
When Red Bull Racing has now fallen off the altar, when Verstappen has lost his dominance, when F1 has become suspenseful; With this season's F1 once again full of excitement and competitiveness, perhaps this kind of scene is also the picture that fans want to see the most!!