The team from Milton Keynes achieved a significant milestone in Formula 1 at the Hungarian Grand Prix. Max Verstappen’s victory marked their 12th consecutive win, making them the first team to accomplish this feat.
It overhauled the impressive run that McLaren had in 1988 when Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost helped it pull off 11 consecutive victories before it was beaten at that year’s Italian Grand Prix.
Red Bull’s performance in Hungary was boosted by modifications to its sidepods and floor, marking the most significant adjustment they had implemented thus far in the season.
However, Christian Horner, the team principal of Red Bull, states that these advancements could potentially be the final performance upgrades for this year. This is due to the team’s requirement of meticulous planning in order to effectively allocate resources for wind tunnel development, as they shift their focus towards the RB20.
Regarding the improvements, Horner expressed, “They fulfilled their promises. Therefore, in that aspect, it can be considered as a completed task.”
“With the current disadvantage we face, we must now shift our attention towards the upcoming year. Our competitors have a considerable advantage in wind tunnel time, so we need to carefully prioritize its usage.”
Due to the Aerodynamic Testing Restrictions in F1, teams that have a higher position in the standings during specific periods of the year have reduced access to wind tunnel and CFD runs.
At the halfway mark of the season, Red Bull, as the current leader in the championship, receives only 70% of the standard allocation. In contrast, Mercedes receives 75%, Aston Martin receives 80%, and Ferrari receives 85%.
Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Red Bull Racing
However, what is even more intriguing is that McLaren’s underwhelming beginning to the campaign resulted in a sixth-place position in the constructors’ championship at the designated point, entitling them to receive 95% of the permitted amount.
In addition to exceeding the official limit, Red Bull is also required to reduce its running time by an additional 10% due to the penalty imposed for breaching the cost cap last year.
Horner claimed that, when all factors were considered, the disparities in capabilities between his team and its competitors were astonishing.
“I cannot reword.”
“And we are massively down once you get back to teams that are fourth or fifth. And if you compare McLaren’s amount of runs they can do in a wind tunnel versus ourselves, it’s a huge, huge difference.
Therefore, it is essential for us to exercise extreme caution and discretion in the operations we are undertaking. Consequently, the engineering team based in Milton Keynes is commendably performing their duties by efficiently and effectively advancing the development of the car.
Horner said that, with the focus shifting towards 2024, any further updates to the car would be circuit-specific – so potentially low-drag items for races like Spa and Monza.
He mentioned that there will be some circuit-specific elements, but nothing that hasn’t already been accomplished and dedicated to research and development.
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