After the high that was Suzuka, a challenging Bahrain Grand Prix served to somewhat dampen the Red Bull spirits.

However, as Red Bull look to steady the ship with Max Verstappen chasing a fifth straight World Championship, Red Bull’s other multi-time champion Sebastian Vettel is backing his former team to rebound in the title race.

Red Bull and Max Verstappen to deny McLaren in F1 2025?

Four rounds into F1 2025 and McLaren has established itself as the team to beat, winning three of the opening four grands prix and sitting atop the Constructors’ standings, while Lando Norris leads Oscar Piastri in the Drivers’ Championship.

Verstappen meanwhile is the only non-McLaren grand prix winner so far this season, but after a sensational victory from pole in Suzuka, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner’s warning that it would be “impossible” to repeat that in Bahrain early in the race weekend proved true.

Under the lights, Verstappen qualified P7 only, racing to P6 at the chequered flag as Piastri became the first two-time winner of the season and leapfrogged Verstappen into P2 in the Drivers’ standings in the process.

Verstappen was not best pleased after the race, revealing “I don’t feel like” talking to his Red Bull team about it in the immediate aftermath, while senior advisor Helmut Mark spoke of a “great concern” that they could lose Verstappen if they do not find performance.

However, Vettel – who won his four World Championships with Red Bull in consecutive seasons from 2010-13 – has faith in his team that they will turn the tide.

Last season, it was McLaren who surged up the order to end Red Bull’s dominant ways and wrestle away the Constructors’ Championship, though Verstappen was able to withstand the Norris charge and secure his fourth World title in a row, matching Vettel’s achievement.

“Obviously Red Bull isn’t very strong now, but if you just go back one year, Red Bull started off very strong and wasn’t that strong at the end and still won (the Drivers’ title). So I think, you know, of course it can change,” Vettel told Reuters.

“It’s not that easy to fix but generally I think they know what they are doing.

“It is very likely or very possible that Red Bull can turn it around.”

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However, Vettel doubts that one potential McLaren scenario, which could boost Verstappen and Red Bull, is going to materialise.

While Verstappen is the undisputed number one driver at Red Bull, so far at McLaren, there is very little to choose between Norris and Piastri with both drivers shaping-up as clear title contenders.

Such a situation could spell opportunity for Verstappen, with Norris and Piastri taking points off each other, plus the potential for incidents between battling team-mates, but Vettel does not believe McLaren has a combustible driver pairing regardless of what could be on the line.

Vettel knows all too well what it is like to experience team-mate tensions around the title, stemming from his time at Red Bull with Mark Webber, who is now Piastri’s manager.

“I would still put Lando as an indirect favourite, but time will tell,” Vettel stated on the Drivers’ Championship picture.

“Naturally people always look for entertainment, which is fine and it’s part of the sport, but I don’t see those two [Norris and Piastri] having a really intense and rough partnership.

“I think they’ll get along and I think Andrea [Stella, McLaren team principal] also is in a position to manage them well.

“I think the rivalries nowadays are different. I think we had respect and I think this generation has respect for each other. But I think they have progressed and they manage it better than us to differentiate what’s happening on track and what’s happening off track.”

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