Jos Verstappen says 2025 ‘won’t work out at all’ for Red Bull unless they keep one pre-season promise

Red Bull are looking to close the gap to McLaren at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. Their Woking-based rivals have established a clear advantage over the field.

McLaren finished almost 40 seconds clear of their nearest rival at the Miami GP. ‘Everyone’ in the F1 paddock thinks McLaren are ‘miles ahead’ of the field, as defending champion Max Verstappen dropped from pole position to fourth.

The Dutchman is still in contention for the 2025 title, but it is clear Red Bull need to find improvements. Verstappen and his teammates Liam Lawson and Yuki Tsunoda have struggled to handle the RB21, which is inferior to the MCL39.

Verstappen has been getting frustrated with Red Bull, constantly calling for upgrades to come to the car. The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix was the target for the Milton Keynes outfit to bring updates.

Helmut Marko said the ‘deadline’ for updates was Imola, otherwise it would have been ‘too late’ to catch McLaren. Now that they have arrived in the form of adjustments to the floor and a revised sidepod entrance, they must put them in the ‘right direction’.

Jos Verstappen says 2025 ‘won’t work out at all’ for Red Bull if Imola upgrades do not work

Verstappen cannot be ruled out of the title race as he sits 32 points behind Oscar Piastri. However, it could soon become difficult to challenge the McLarens if their latest updates fail to see improvements from the RB21.

Speaking via racexpress, father Jos Verstappen says Red Bull ‘shouted out loud’ about updates in Imola. Now they are on the car, he says they must put the team in the ‘right direction, or 2025 ‘won’t work out at all’.

“The expectation, yes, that they will come with updates, because yes, that is what they shouted out loud at the beginning of the season,” he said.

“Imola, that’s where it’s going to happen. So, I’m curious, it’s absolutely important that it goes in the right direction, because otherwise the distance will simply become too great.

“So in the next three races, the real points difference must become smaller, otherwise it won’t work out at all this year.”

He added: “If the speed is not there, certainly in the competitions, then it becomes a… it is already a problem. So we need to start closing the gap, get greater balance in that car.”

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Can Red Bull emulate McLaren’s brake solutions after FIA clearance?

Gary Anderson was saddened by Red Bull’s upgrades at Imola, believing that the teams are ‘running out of steam’ in 2025, the final year of the current ground effect regulations.

Red Bull are looking to find ways to close the gap to McLaren, after their brake ducts were cleared by the FIA. The Milton Keynes outfit had accused their rivals of illegally cooling their rear brakes after Red Bull pointed thermal imaging cameras at the rear of the MCL39.

Red Bull have bombarded the FIA with complaints in recent weeks, questioning the legality of the McLaren machine. Now that it has been approved, the Milton Keynes squad have to focus on fixing their car, with the F1 paddock having ‘suspicions’ about Red Bull and if they are more worried about others.

Verstappen hinted Red Bull could emulate McLaren’s brake tricks after the FIA found no wrongdoing on the MCL39. The team will certainly look for any way to close the gap before the Spanish GP flexi-wing directive shakes up the order.