© Getty ImagesChristian's Column: Max AttackAfter our first win of 2021 in Imola, Christian Horner shares his thoughts ahead of the doube-header.
AftertheopeningtwoFormulaOneracesofthe2021season,
Pre-season testing can only tell you so much, so it was encouraging to see the pace of the RB16B in Bahrain. But what was more special was going to Imola and backing that performance up to prove Bahrain was not a one-off.
At the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, both Sergio and Max were competitive. We had a messy Friday, but the Team recovered well and on Saturday, Checo in particular had a great qualifying and achieved his first F1 front-row start. It was also the first time Max had been out-qualified by a teammate since Daniel at the 2018 Mexican GP, so to have both cars within a tenth of pole, despite both drivers having made mistakes on their fastest laps, shows either car could have been in P1.
That is exactly what we are looking for as a Team but Mercedes are still right at the top of their game.
For Max there was only going to be one guy coming out of turn one in front – and that was him.
For Max, his mindset going into the race was also a bit like Mexico 2018 and after his mistake in qualifying there was only going to be one guy coming out of turn one in front – and that was him. He had a good start in tricky damp conditions and went wheel-to-wheel with Lewis through the first corner. Placing his car perfectly on the racing line, he was able to edge ahead and from there the race was his to lose.
Sergio also had a good start, his first from the grid for us after his Bahrain pit lane start. However, his Sunday was not as strong as his Saturday and while in clean air he had the same pace as the leaders, he lost ground early on with the time penalty and a mistake meaning he couldn’t convert his front-row start into a podium.
The Team timed Max’s tyre cross over perfectly, going from intermediate to slick tyres, which is always difficult when you are leading the race. Victory is always a true Team effort - great pit stops, strategy and reliability trackside plus a mammoth effort from the factory behind the scenes.
It has to be said that Lewis was extremely fortunate, a sentiment I’m sure he would echo. The red flag, which was caused by his teammate, allowed him to un-lap himself after his own accident when he would have been effectively out of the race for a podium finish.
But it was a very strong comeback drive by him and Mercedes once again showed great race pace, so you can see there is not a lot in it at the moment.
It is about getting it right on the day, not making mistakes and developing the car efficiently within the budget cap rules and getting the most out of each weekend.
We will try and put as much pressure on Lewis in his title defence as we possibly can. He made a fundamental error when he went off which is easy to do in those conditions but after Max's victory, he still leads the championship thanks to the single point he won for setting the fastest lap in the race. So, if the next 21 races are as exciting as the first two, then it is going to be an epic season.
Cheering Max Across The Line© Vladimir Rys
This season, F1 has introduced a budget cap and it is up to the teams to work within those restrictions, which is not an easy task for the bigger teams.
We went through a restructure over the winter, which was very tough and saw us having to downsize across certain departments. We went through a restructure over the winter, which was very tough and saw us having to downsize across certain departments. We made the difficult decision to take the pain early on so everyone knew where they stood and I understand other teams have elected to take a different approach and are now completing that challenging process.
The budget cap is a big factor when it comes to performance, so a big crash like the one Valtteri had in Imola could hamper your ability to develop the current car as Toto said. But with the circuits we have coming up, including street circuits with close barriers, accidents will happen to everyone and we will all have to deal with the same challenge at some point.
There is a tricky balancing act between committing to the new car and working on the current car. The other aspect is that with a new set of regulations for 2022, you have to weigh up how you split your resources over the two cars. There is a tricky balancing act between committing to the new car and working on the current car which we are all having to navigate.
It’s also been a big week for Red Bull Powertrains. We broke ground on building work for the new facility and confirmed the appointment of Ben Hodgkinson as Technical Director.
Ben will head up all technical aspects with a key focus on developing Red Bull's inaugural power unit, to comply with the new Formula One regulations currently planned for 2025.
He comes to this hugely exciting project as a proven race winner and as an innovator capable of leading a like-minded team of highly skilled engineers. His appointment signals our long-term intent and we will support him and his team with every available resource required in order to succeed.
Outside The Factory In Milton Keynes© Getty Images
Other than Ferrari, we will be the only F1 team who has an engine department fully integrated into the team on the same campus which is hugely important to us.
This is a huge undertaking but we are approaching it with the same methodology that has made us successful on the chassis side. We will recruit key talent in order to build the strongest group of minds possible and provide those people with the facilities and support they need to succeed.
People thought we would never have a successful F1 team and we proved them wrong. This sort of project excites us and should excite others as we look down the road to the implementation of the new regulations when we will build a Red Bull designed and manufactured engine. People thought we would never have a successful F1 team and we proved them wrong. We see this as a huge opportunity and one we are fully invested in.
PodiumsInPortugalOrToReignInSpain?
We are now going into a double-header as the races come thick and fast. We go to Portugal and then Spain and they are both great tracks but circuits we would expect to play to Mercedes' strengths, based on last year's data.
I always said it would take four races to get a clear picture of form, so now is the acid test. Portimao was a good addition to the calendar last year, the surface will hopefully have weathered-in a little bit as the newly resurfaced circuit was very slippery. Barcelona is the benchmark we all have so much data from so it will be interesting to see who comes out on top.
I am excited for both races and you can be sure that we are full of energy and motivation. If we can put Mercedes under a little bit of pressure at these tracks then that bodes well for the rest of the year. I always said it would take four races to get a clear picture of form, so now is the acid test.
These Boots Were Ready For Racing© Vladimir Rys
Just before the race in Imola, F1 announced a 10-year contract with Miami from 2022 which is great news.
After all, who would moan about going to Miami? It’s a great city, a great place to have a Grand Prix and it’s fantastic to have another American race, so I think it is a great addition to the schedule and we will be excited to be there.
America is such a big market for F1 and we have seen plenty of positive support in the region through our new and long-term partnerships.
We have also seen just how popular Formula One has become with the American audience thanks to the Netflix Drive to Survive series, so it’s great to have two races in the US and give the fans out there more access to the sport on their home turf.
