Red Bull have had a troublesome start to the 2025 season. Despite winning the Japanese Grand Prix, they have been noticeably behind their rivals.
Max Verstappen faces an incredibly tough title challenge as he struggles to handle the difficult nature of the RB21. The car has clearly regressed from last season as Red Bull are arguably the fourth-fastest team.
This was proven at the Bahrain Grand Prix. While Yuki Tsunoda got the second RB21 into Q3 and the points for the first time in 2025, Verstappen could only manage P7 in qualifying and climbed to sixth in the race.
| Position | Drivers’ Championship | Points |
| 1 |
Lando Norris |
77 |
| 2 |
Oscar Piastri |
74 |
| 3 |
Max Verstappen |
69 |
| 4 |
George Russell |
63 |
| 5 |
Charles Leclerc |
32 |
| 6 |
Andrea Kimi Antonelli |
30 |
| 7 |
Lewis Hamilton |
25 |
| 8 |
Alexander Albon |
18 |
| 9 |
Esteban Ocon |
14 |
| 10 |
Lance Stroll |
10 |
He finished half a minute behind the winner Oscar Piastri as a lack of performance and poor pit stops cost him and Tsunoda. Verstappen was most annoyed with the pit stops as he lost valuable seconds to his rivals.
After Bahrain, Red Bull are 80 points behind McLaren. While Verstappen remains in the title picture as he sits eight points behind leader Lando Norris, the situation at the team and their top figures is creating a ‘bizarre atmosphere.’
People in the Red Bull hospitality ‘tense up’ when Christian Horner or Helmut Marko walk in
Red Bull have been having issues internally since the start of 2024. The power struggles behind the two sides of the ownership has led to several key figures leaving the team, including Adrian Newey and Jonathan Wheatley.
There has been noticeable friction in the current setup, particularly when it comes to Christian Horner and Helmut Marko, as the problems with the leadership affect the performance on track.
Speaking via ESPN’s Unlapped podcast, journalist Nate Saunders says people ‘tense up’ when Horner or Marko walk into the hospitality. There is a ‘weird vibe’ at Red Bull as they try to figure out how to fix their issues.
“I mean, I’ve been in the Red Bull hospitality and it can be weird and I think Laurence will attest to this as well, there’s just a weird vibe down there.
“Especially when Jos Verstappen’s in town as well, because you have all of these big figures down at Red Bull and you can tell they’re just kind of side-eyeing each other.
“Marko will walk in or Horner will walk in and you can see people tense up a little bit. There is a bizarre atmosphere down there.”
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Max Verstappen is growing more and more frustrated with Red Bull
Heading into the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Verstappen is not impressed with Red Bull’s current situation. He wants to see upgrades come to the car as soon as possible to keep his title hopes alive.
Marko has set a deadline for upgrades to come by the Emilia-Romagna GP. If they do not arrive by then – the seventh race of the season – it may be ‘too late’ to catch the likes of McLaren.
Red Bull’s star driver had been voicing his concerns about the machinery, but they had been ignored. Verstappen is ‘most frustrated’ Red Bull didn’t listen to him sooner, as the issue could have been avoided had it been spotted earlier.
Despite the trouble within the team, Verstappen thinks Jeddah could be a ‘better race’ for Red Bull. The circuit is less abrasive and does not wear the tyres too much, which could give the 27-year-old an opportunity to get in the mix at the front.
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