Red Bull released Sergio Perez from his contract having cost them the defence of the F1 constructors’ championship last term, yet their problems have continued in 2025.
The Milton Keynes squad could rely on Max Verstappen to single-handedly seal Red Bull the 2023 teams’ title as the Dutchman secured 575 of their 860 points. But McLaren and Ferrari caught and eclipsed Red Bull in 2024, with Verstappen’s 437 points alone no longer enough.
Perez offered Red Bull just 152 points through the 2024 F1 season, to even come just eighth in the drivers’ standings. So, Christian Horner accepted he was wrong to sign Perez to a new contract last June and released the Mexican, with Liam Lawson initially taking over the seat.
Yet Red Bull have often remained a long way off the speed that McLaren can deliver in 2025. Mercedes and Ferrari have also enjoyed stronger performances than Verstappen, Lawson or Yuki Tsunoda since round three have sealed when the race conditions have suited their cars.
Red Bull’s 2025 problems show Sergio Perez ‘took the fall’ for their inability to improve
Verstappen has had to fight the RB21’s through-corner balance issues all year. He is sat third in the F1 drivers’ standings more through his talent than Red Bull having a car that can fight, resulting in Verstappen’s manager having a heated exchange with Helmut Marko in Bahrain.
Sakir saw the RB21 at arguably its worst, despite Tsunoda being the first Red Bull driver not named Verstappen in the points since Perez. And Christian Danner hints Verstappen’s P6 at the Bahrain GP shows Perez took the fall for Red Bull not refining a car they knew was bad.
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Danner told Motorsport-Magazin: “Sergio Perez had to take the fall because he always said it couldn’t go on like this. That meant that last year, they already knew there was real work to be done… The team sees and hears the problems, but aren’t able to solve them.
“If there was a ‘quick fix’, it would have been implemented long ago. The car has been poor since the middle of last year. It’s no longer good enough to dominate and give Verstappen what he needs.”
Danner continued: “The car is equipped with tons of sensors by the best data engineers and the best data engineers are analysing this information. The fact that it’s taking so long shows either the wrong people are involved or the error hasn’t even been properly analysed yet.”
Max Verstappen is losing faith in Red Bull’s technical team amid their ongoing problems
Danner may have a point to question if Red Bull have the people in Milton Keynes who can improve the RB21 given the brain drain they have endured of late. They will particularly be feeling the effects of McLaren signing Rob Marshall and Aston Martin hiring Adrian Newey.
Marshall is one of F1’s most-respected engineers and has been a main reason for McLaren’s turnaround from midfield marauders to 2024 constructors’ champions and the favourites to lift the 2025 drivers’ title. Design icon Newey is also the most successful person in F1 history.
Red Bull promoted Pierre Wache to fill the void Newey created before agreeing to join Aston Martin as their managing technical partner. Yet as well as Danner wondering if Red Bull have the right staff, Verstappen is losing belief in Red Bull’s technical team under Wache, as well.
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