IndyCar star Marcus Ericsson points out Red Bull's core issue preventing Max Verstappen's teammates from succeeding

IndyCar driver Marcus Ericsson came out after the F1 Australian Grand Prix and highlighted Red Bull’s core problem which has led to the struggles of Max Verstappen's teammates. The Swedish driver was featured on the Viaplay F1 podcast to discuss the same alongside the hosts.

Daniel Ricciardo was the last Red Bull driver who went toe-to-toe with Max Verstappen in the same car. Every driver since i.e. Alex Albon, Pierre Gasly, Sergio Perez and now Liam Lawson seem to struggle against the Dutchman. While some of it is down to the exceptional skill of the four-time F1 champion, Marcus Ericsson suggested it might be down to how the Red Bull F1 car is designed.

Sergio Perez was sacked by Red Bull at the end of the 2024 season after the Mexican failed to perform anywhere near the level of Verstappen. As a result, the team lost the constructors championship. Liam Lawson was brought in to replace Checo, but the New Zealander also struggled against the Dutchman at the Australian GP.

Questions were raised on whether Liam Lawson was the right choice, and whether Yuki Tsunoda would've been a better fit for the team given he has multiple years of F1 experience, and did perform exceptionally well in Melbourne.

In an episode of the Viaplay F1 podcast, Marcus Ericsson suggested that Tsunoda wouldn't have qualified P5 in the Red Bull, as he did in the AlphaTauri. He said:

“I'm absolutely not sure that Yuki Tsunoda would have qualified fifth.”

Podcast host and TV commentator then detailed how the car is developed based on Max Verstappen's feedback, leading to the struggles faced by the second driver, as the Dutchman likes a car with a quick front end. He said:

“They get confused when they go by Max Verstappen's references or feedback? Of course they have their own. They think and have their own thoughts. Those who design the car in the past Adrian Newey has been there and now Pierre Wache, all of them, but the whole structure around the car that they have is of course based on what the drivers tell them about it.”

“And when they see what a car like Verstappen's can do, then they want to be able to demand the same thing from someone else, but no one else gets up to that level,” he added.

With the new regulations for 2026 on the horizon, it wouldn't make sense for Red Bull to pool all their resources into completely changing the concept of the car to make it easier to drive. Hence the RB21 is seemingly an evolution of the RB20, rather than a whole new concept.

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“I need to perform”: Marcus Ericsson expresses the urge to improve ahead of the 2025 IndyCar season

Marcus Ericsson, driver of the #28 Bryant Team Honda drives during practice INDYCAR Firestone Grand Prix of St. Petersburg - Source: Getty

Marcus Ericsson ended the 2024 IndyCar season 15th in the championship despite driving for a top team like Andretti. With not a single win to his name, the Swedish driver expressed the urge to improve in the current IndyCar season.

“I can't have a year like that again, that's not the way I need to perform. On a personal side, one thing that was clear when we did analysis after the season is that we were by far the biggest sort of outlier if you look at championship position and average pace during the season,” said Marcus Ericsson (via Race).

The Swedish driver started the first race of the season at St. Pete in P7 and finished in P6.