Does Red Bull only develop the car for Max Verstappen? Former race engineer gives his take

Former Red Bull race engineer Blake Hinsey claims the team does not develop the car specifically to suit Max Verstappen. Hinsey instead claimed that the Austrian team spends time trying to understand why Verstappen's teammates lack compared to the Dutchman.

With Verstappen having cemented himself as Red Bull's dominant driver, many believe the team tends to develop the car to best suit his driving style. However, as per Hinsey, who worked with the team, Red Bull does no such thing.

Speaking on the Sky Sports F1 podcast, Hinsey spoke about car development:

"Having developed all the way from 2015 to 2022 cars in the simulator, I don't ever remember seeing one of those things where you're pushing to help develop the car for the lead driver.

"Both of the drivers are giving feedback and more often, you're actually spending time looking at solutions to find the driver."

Max Verstappen is currently locked in a title battle with his teammate Sergio Perez, who stormed to victory at the 2023 Azerbaijan GP. The two drivers are now separated by only six points in the drivers' standings, with the Dutchman in the lead. With the 2023 Miami GP up next, it will be interesting to follow their progress.

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Others to blame for Max Verstappen's dominance, claims former Bridgestone head

Former Bridgestone tire competition head Kees van de Grint recently commented on Max Verstappen's current domination in F1, suggesting that it is not solely attributed to his own skill, but also the inadequacies of his competitors.

Verstappen took an early lead in the 2023 season's Drivers' Championship by winning two races and finishing second twice in the first four races. Red Bull currently holds a strong 1-2 position in the drivers' standings, with Verstappen's teammate Sergio Perez in second place.

Perez secured victory at the 2023 Azerbaijan GP, narrowing the gap to Verstappen.

According to van de Grint, Verstappen's success is primarily due to his competitors' inability to match Red Bull's technological advancements in the modern ground-effect era. He asserts that Verstappen has faced minimal opposition from other teams due to his car's superior performance.

“It is, of course, monotonous. I did not expect otherwise, but Max Verstappen is the big winner. His dominance is actually not good for the sport, but you can’t blame him. You have to blame the rest of it.”

However, with Sergio Perez now only six points behind the Dutchman in the standings, it will be interesting to see if Verstappen can secure his third title in the sport.

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