"We understand what our issues are" - Red Bull boss admits suspension stiffness still a concern for the team as Max Verstappen wins in Canada

Red Bull Racing CEO Christian Horner admits that the suspension stiffness was an issue in Canada that affected Max Verstappen. Speaking to onsite media after the race, the Brit conceded that the suspension issue remains one of their weaknesses that needs to be improved.

In the Canadian GP, the Dutchman was struggling to ride the kerbs around the circuit, which led to significant balance issues and loss of lap time. From Friday, the weekend wasn’t an easy one for Red Bull where the 26-year-old was out of a majority of the practice sessions due to an ERS (Energy Recovery System) problem with his car. Although he managed to match the pole position time in a wet qualifying session, he had to start from second on the grid.

Describing their issues in the race, Horner explained that as the circuit would dry up, the balance of the car would change. He acknowledged the suspension stiffness and believes it is one of the areas to improvise on. Nevertheless, the Red Bull Racing chief felt that the Canadian race was a recovery from Monaco, where the Dutch champion finished sixth in the race and Sergio Perez crashed out from the race. He felt that the performance of the suspension was much better in Montreal compared to the other circuits.

Asked about Verstappen’s complaints on the radio about the stiffness of the suspension, the Red Bull Racing CEO said:

“I think what he was referring to in the car was, it was pretty stiff. As the circuit was drying out, it becomes quicker and it is time to use kerb. I think we understand what our issues are and it was a great recovery from Monaco, a couple of weeks ago. To win a race like that, you know was a very big rewarding win. I think it was his 60th win.”

Asked whether Red Bull can improve the stiffness of the car without compromising their aerodynamic performance, Horner replied:

“All of it has to work in tandem, so you know of course you are pushing the aerodynamic platform of the car, but you want the car to ride kerbs. What was encouraging this weekend, was our sector three this weekend was competitive, even with the stiffness of the car. Wrapping over that last chicane, if you look throughout the running, we were very competitive there. So despite it being uncomfortable, we still manage to be quick enough. Now we need to, I think there is genuine performance there, if we can allot that, then we will see, free up lap time.”

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Christian Horner believes Red Bull have their work cut out for the rest of the 2024 season

Christian Horner believes that the last three race weekends have been difficult for Red Bull Racing, in terms of performance. He did not expect their rivals to be competitive at every circuit and feels that they will have to maximise their opportunities at every weekend to maintain the points gap. The 50-year-old felt that despite the difficulties in the last three weekends, they managed to win two races. But he felt that at circuits like Singapore later in the year, Ferrari could be extremely competitive.

Asked if the conventional circuits up next meant that Red Bull would return to their top form, Horner replied:

“I mean the last couple of races have been more chalky water for us. But we have still managed to win two out of the last three races. We were pole in Imola, we matched the pole time here, where the car was a bit, where both drivers were feeling its deficiencies. So theres a lot of focus on that, to see if we can obviously improve that.

"We’ve got circuits later in the year like Singapore and Ferrari could be a factor. We really didn’t expect for Ferrari, McLaren and Mercedes who came into that window this weekend, to be competitive at every circuit. Despite the fact that we’ve won six out of the nine races, we are going to have to be really really at the top of our game to keep eating at the gap.”

On their upgrade schedule heading into the triple header on the calendar, the Red Bull boss said:

“Its all about the iterations and of course you have to look very carefully where you bring your upgrades through the year. So we’re constantly on top of the curve, so you can get a law of diminishing returns. There will be subtle upgrades over the summer months.”

Horner claims Red Bull have had to strategise their upgrades tactfully and will schedule them in a subtle manner over the summer months. From his claims, Red Bull could potentially distribute their upgrade allocation across the European races. According to speculation, they are scheduled to bring their upgrade in Spain, but their rivals Ferrari and McLaren are also expected to bring massive upgrades to their car. Although the general notion remains that the Milton Keynes squad could return to their dominant ways, the reality could play out differently.

As it stands, Red Bull Racing are leading Ferrari by 49 points and McLaren by 89 points. But given the scenario in the last three race weekends, one could expect the championship points table to fluctuate over the next few races. The triple header up next will start with the Spanish GP scheduled from June 21-23, Austrian GP scheduled from June 28-30 and will end with the British GP scheduled from July 5-7, 2024. The team that can gather the maximum points in these three races will likely lead the championship by the summer break.