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Christian Horner believes Max Verstappen’s victory at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix demonstrated Red Bull might have reached a turning point in their attempt to catch McLaren in the Formula One world championship, potentially igniting the season.
Verstappen won in Imola having pulled off a striking pass to overtake the pole-sitter and title leader Oscar Piastri for the lead through the Tamburello chicane on the opening lap. After which the world champion went on to control Sunday’s race from the front with pace that was more than a match for the McLarens who had previously dominated the season. It marked the first time this year that Red Bull had definitively held the upper hand in race pace , having not overworked their tyres in doing so and Horner felt it indicated they were in the title fight.
“At all times, Max, he had the pace,” the Red Bull team principal said. “He was able to respond. It never felt that we were under pressure from behind. I think we had the pace to cover whatever they could throw at us.
“It’s an important win for the team and at this stage of the championship. It feels like we’re building a little bit of momentum behind the scenes. It’s a timely win championship-wise. It keeps the pressure on and keeps us in touch.”
This is only Verstappen’s second win this season, the first taken in Japan, a meeting where he claimed pole and where track position proved crucial. This time it was his pace that told and he has closed the gap to Piastri whom he now trails by 22 points in the championship.
Most importantly for Red Bull, who had brought a new floor to the previous round in Miami and more minor upgrades to Imola, their developments appear to be paying off in making their car more adaptable to conditions and in its tyre degradation, a vital advantage that had given McLaren a march in the opening stages of the season.
“Definitely we’ve managed to put some performance on the car and get it into a better window,” said Horner. “Since Brazil last year, which was a wet race, that’s the first time I can remember in a long time we’ve had the pace to really pull away and out-deg the McLaren. That’s very encouraging.”
His opinion on the pace improvement of the Red Bull was shared by the McLaren team principal, Andrea Stella.
“We were a little surprised to be honest here by the pace of Red Bull,” he said. “The race was very much decided by the swap of positions between Oscar and Max in corner one. After that we tried to chase him but effectively we didn’t have enough race pace today to be able to beat Max.
“They have improved, They’ve been developing their car over the last couple of races and I think they have taken a step forward,”
Horner praised Verstappen for pulling off the crucial overtake but also noted that the next round in Monaco this weekend would be another test of how far they have managed to bring their car forward.
“Max just sent it and it was kind of win it or bin it, he’s just so good in that situation where he just sees a gap and it’s so decisive for him,” he said, adding when asked if Red Bull had finally unlocked the real potential of their car: “I’ll tell you in a week”.
