2013 Belgium Grand Prix Team Preview: Red Bull would look to extend their dominance

The summer break has come to an end and the teams will be out on the track once again this weekend at the Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium. Red Bull Racing have been dominating the F1 scene for the past three seasons and they are very much in the right position to add another double title win to their name.

Sebastian Vettel, as usual, is leading the points table and his dream run still continues. Half the season is over and Vettel and Red Bull once again asserted their supremacy. But nothing is permanent in F1 and Red Bull cannot afford to be complacent.

Red Bull have one of the best cars in the paddock and they have been able to generate good race pace. They have been consistently good in the qualifying sessions as well. With the new range of tyres from Pirelli seemingly doing better, they have one less thing to worry about.

Also, Vettel has a 38 point cushion over his closest rival and second place Kimi Raikkonen. Hence, Red Bull just have to ensure that their top driver regularly grabs a podium finish in the remainder of the season. That would be enough to win him another World Championship title. This should ease the pressure off Red Bull and Vettel a little bit as they do not have to look for a win in every race.

Nevertheless, both Vettel and Red Bull will not settle for anything less as they will push for the win in every race in the second half of the season. Having already won once in 2011, Vettel will be eager to repeat his feat again this year, not just to gain more advantage over his rivals, but also for his personal satisfaction.

The circuit at the Spa-Francorchamps is one of the most favourite tracks for the drivers. The track traditionally has favoured raw pace and provides a tough challenge in its corners, thus testing a driver’s tyre management skills. Pirelli have decided to go for hard and medium compounds for this weekend, keeping in mind the pressure the 7 km track puts on the tyres.

Vettel, apart from his raw pace, is also known for his tyre preservation skills, so Red Bull may go for a 3 stop strategy for the 44 lap race.

Another important aspect to Red Bull’s post-break season is related to the team’s other driver, Mark Webber. The Australian clearly has not had a great time in the team, hence his decision to quit. So it would be interesting to see how Webber performs in the remainder of what would be his last season in F1.

He has performed considerably well despite some hard luck this season and it will not be a surprise if he manages to put up a great race this Sunday. He is very much capable of winning and a podium finish can be expected from him. He is already set to quit the sport, so there’s not much pressure on him to outperform his team mate. This may just work as a blessing in disguise for the Australian. With nothing to lose, he might just come up with a spectacular performance, which is somewhat long overdue from him.

All in all, Red Bull are expected to have a nice weekend and another great race. It would not be easy though as tough competition is on the cards. However, Red Bull are not new to these challenges and they are the favourites to gain maximum points from this race as well.