Red Bull won their eighth Formula 1 drivers’ title in 2024 courtesy of Max Verstappen. But for the second time during his four-year run of dominance, they missed out on the constructors’ crown.
Verstappen produced what many feel was his most complete season yet to beat Lando Norris by 63 points. The Dutchman survived a 10-race winless run thanks to his clinical consistency.
But Red Bull could only manage third in the constructors’ standings, 77 points adrift of eventual champions McLaren. This was largely down to Sergio Perez’s struggles – he only managed four podiums to Verstappen’s 14, and scored a mere 25.8% of their points.
But the team themselves must also take some responsibility. They lost their way with the development of the car, which concerned Verstappen even though he held a commanding lead.
Perhaps this was an inevitability when the team lost multiple key figures. Most notably, legendary designer Adrian Newey handed in his resignation in the spring.
Following the Newey announcement, Jos Verstappen warned Red Bull could ‘fall apart’. They were certainly riven by division at the start of the year.
Christian Horner tried to become Red Bull’s Toto Wolff, but it backfired
According to German journalist Michael Schmidt, Christian Horner wanted a similar amount of power to Mercedes counterpart Toto Wolff. In addition to being the team principal, Wolff holds a 33% stake in the Silver Arrows.
To attain that level of authority, Horner tried to oust executive director Helmut Marko. This could have had major ramifications for the future of Verstappen, activating an exit clause in his contract.
However, Horner ‘underestimated’ his internal rivals and his power grab failed. Marko ultimately signed a new deal, strengthening his own position.
A truce between Horner and Marko ensured that Verstappen stayed put for at least another year. And it may have been crucial in his successful title defence too.
“In principle, it was about who has the power in the team,” Schmidt explained on the Formel Schmidt podcast. “Horner wanted to have it, wanted to push Helmut Marko out, probably also with the plan in the back of his mind to one day be a co-owner of the team like Toto Wolff.
“That went terribly wrong because he underestimated the others, who had a few tricks up their sleeve. Somehow they pulled themselves together again.”
How Jos Verstappen is influencing Red Bull’s decision on Max Verstappen teammate
Horner has also been at odds with Verstappen Sr this year, putting the world champion in a difficult position. As with Marko, the Englishman has kept the working relationship just about intact.
The biggest flashpoint perhaps came at the Austrian GP, when Verstappen’s father alleged that he’d been denied the chance to drive the RB8 in the legends’ parade. Ex-F1 driver Verstappen was seen visiting the Mercedes hospitality afterwards.
This encapsulated the volatile situation at Red Bull in the early part of the year. Jos Verstappen’s ‘stirring’ may have prompted Horner to re-sign Perez at first, because that move represented stability.
Now, Red Bull will keep the Verstappen camp ‘happy’ by hiring Liam Lawson. Their hope is that the New Zealander is fast enough to take points off rivals, without threatening the pecking order at Milton Keynes.
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