Christian Horner and Red Bull left red-faced as McLaren’s real ‘secret’ emerges at the Monaco Grand Prix

Red Bull have consistently, whether in public or private, questioned the legitimacy of McLaren’s rise in the last year. They have done so with limited success.

It was May 2024 when Lando Norris ended McLaren’s three-year victory drought. Since that race in Miami, Andrea Stella has seen his team win 11 out of 26 Grands Prix.

Red Bull relinquished their constructors’ title to the Woking outfit last year, slipping to third place. And they occupy the same position heading into this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix, some 148 points adrift.

After Oscar Piastri won in Azerbaijan last year, Red Bull lobbied the FIA to cut out McLaren’s ‘mini DRS’ trick at the rear. They agreed to modify the design, a victory for Christian Horner.

The sport’s governing body are also introducing stricter front-wing flexibility tests in Monaco, which Red Bull hope will slow McLaren down. But for the most part, they’ve struggled to reel in the papaya squad via the regulatory route.

McLaren’s cooling could be the key as Red Bull tyre theories dashed

Red Bull approached the FIA after they found that the rear of McLaren’s car was unusually cool in their own investigation. Zak Brown taunted Horner over his behind-the-scenes accusation that they were injecting water into their Pirelli rubber.

A full investigation into Piastri’s car confirmed that it was fully compliant with the regulations. That dealt a blow to theories that McLaren were using any mysterious tricks.

Instead, the key to their early 2025 prowess may lie in their clearly visible cooling. The MCL39’s relatively small vents are improving the car’s aerodynamic efficiency, which in turn is helping them to nurse the tyres.

The Race’s Jonathan Noble says this confirms that McLaren’s real ‘secret’ is the cohesion of the package. If true, it’s rather embarrassing for a Red Bull team who have been exploring radical ideas.

“We had the joy of Andrea Stella,” Noble said in the Monaco paddock. “Whenever he explains things in detail, it’s just brilliant. He ran through the changes they made here, the downforce-level changes, the tweaks of suspension to get round the Loews hairpin – all these elements.

“But there was one other notable thing from their car. The cooling vents on their car are so small compared to everybody else, if you compare it to the Red Bull, the Mercedes, the Ferrari.

“Everyone has these big chunky vents trying to get heat out of the engine. McLaren’s is much smaller.

“We asked him about this and he said, ‘Yeah, this is a factor as to why our car is so quick in the heat’. Everyone’s looked at the tyres and brakes and how they’re cooling things down, but he said, ‘This is an under-respected area where we’ve gained pace over last year’.

“It’s a 100% new cooling system for this year. They’ve made gains. And this could explain why, on very, very hot days, that McLaren looks so fast.

“Maybe people are looking in the wrong place. Maybe it’s not so much down to tyres. Maybe it’s the aero benefits of cooling. You get better efficiency, that potentially can be traded off for more downforce, which then improves your tyre life.

“This is ultimately the secret of the McLaren. There isn’t one magic-bullet area. It’s lots and lots of good engineering decisions, everything working together.”

Jos Verstappen was wrong to make subtle McLaren accusation at Monaco Grand Prix

Speaking in the Monaco GP paddock, Jos Verstappen hinted that McLaren had been exploiting front-wing flexibility for ‘far too long’. But there’s an increasing consensus that there’s nothing untoward about this year’s leading car.

Indeed, F1 paddock insiders don’t expect McLaren to take a big hit when the more stringent tests come in next weekend. That would be another blow to Red Bull.

Horner has tried to destabilise McLaren by using the political weapons he’s assembled over his 20 years in the paddock. But their rivals have avoided the war of words that broke out last year.

Red Bull are still in a decent position as they pursue their main goal – the drivers’ championship. Max Verstappen is only 22 points behind Piastri, which proves he can compete for the title even with a pace disadvantage.