13/09/2025 07:25
Laurent Mekies has revealed Red Bull 'questioned everything' to
ensure Max Verstappen could again be competitive and win races this
year following the difficulties it has endured with its RB21. It is
now well known that the issues with the RB21 are rooted in the
early days of last season's RB20, despite Verstappen going on to
clinch his fourth consecutive F1 drivers' championship. Although
Verstappen won seven of the first 10 grands prix last year, he then
embarked on a 10-race winless run, his worst drought since 2020
that threatened to derail his title hopes in the face of Lando
Norris' challenge, only to hold on and clinch another crown. After
winning the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in May, it appeared as if
Verstappen's wait for another victory could potentially run to the
end of the season, only for Red Bull to finally find a piece to the
puzzle that has been missing from its car this year. A new floor
was unveiled for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza last weekend,
providing aero grip and balance that had previously been lacking,
allowing Verstappen to take the chequered flag by 19 seconds, the
largest margin of victory seen this year. Technical director Pierre
Waché said the floor had delivered more performance than
anticipated. It is hoped Verstappen will now be competitive at the
majority of the remaining eight races. Speaking to the media,
including RacingNews365 , in reflecting on Verstappen's win at
Monza, Mekies said: "In this sort of moment, you think of the team
back in Milton Keynes and it's tough start to the season. "When
things are not working the way you would like them to work, when
you are missing that ultimate pace, you question everything. That's
the way we are, the way the competition is. "What is great is that
the team kept an open mind. They did question everything in a very
constructive way, and it was a lot of hard work. "You don't always
get the positive feedback from the track as we got [at Monza]. But
they've been pushing hard, not giving up, and whilst Monza is a
specific layout, blah, blah, blah, it very much gave them back the
credit of many weeks, many months of hard work." At Monza, it was
only Verstappen who ran the new floor. Team-mate Yuki Tsunoda ran
the previous spec he damaged during the grand prix. It is fully
expected that the Japanese driver will take on the new version for
next weekend's race in Azerbaijan, particularly as the team will
lean towards a lower downforce setup to assist with the longest
straight on the F1 calendar.
