Red Bull To Make Performance Sacrifice For 'Wider Working Window' on 2025 Contender

Saajan Jogia | Jan 2, 2025

May 4, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Crewmembers work on the Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen (1) car in the paddock before the F1 Sprint Race at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images / John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner shared that the team’s focus for the 2025 RB21 F1 car will be on achieving a "wider operating window" rather than chasing "ultimate performance," ensuring the car performs consistently across all circuit types and is less sensitive to adjustments and modifications.

In 2024, the Milton Keynes outfit faced significant balance issues with its RB20 F1 car, making it highly sensitive to setup changes and resulting in a noticeable drop in performance. While Max Verstappen managed to mitigate the impact, his former teammate Sergio Perez struggled to adapt, ultimately leading to his departure following the season finale in Abu Dhabi.

The strategy for 2025 focuses on developing a car capable of maintaining balance across all types of circuits, giving Verstappen another strong shot at his fifth title during the final season of Red Bull's dominance in the current ground effect era before the grid resets with the onset of new regulations in 2026. Horner disclosed that the team identified the root causes of its challenges in 2024, paving the way for a clearer path forward. He said:

"We've got a good understanding of where things weren't [as strong].

"I would say around Imola we introduced an upgrade that made the car far more peaky in its performance and it became a very narrow operating window. 

"When you got into that window, like the four laps in Austria that were good enough for pole, it was very much in that window, but if you stepped a millimetre either side, it became a problematic car to drive.

"Max was able to mask it and drive around it, and that's where Checo particularly this year [struggled]. 

"The engineers have been very focused on how you broaden that window, not necessarily adding ultimate performance, but just broadening the window so we're across the different challenges and have a much wider operating window."

Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko stayed along similar lines, revealing that Red Bull's engineers are working on developing a consistent and predictable car. He wrote in his Speedweek column:

“We know what to do.

"This car needs a wider working window, so that it doesn't immediately become unbalanced when there are slight temperature fluctuations or minor technical changes.

“That's exactly what our engineers are working on. Forty points of downforce is good, but four tenths on the stopwatch is what interests me and the drivers. The handling must be predictable for the driver so that he can build up the necessary confidence.”

The 81-year-old advisor also took into account the intense competition predicted for the 2025 season but emphasized his faith in the team to hand Verstappen another championship-winning car. He added:

“I am sure that we will be facing a close battle at the top next year and that is normal in the last year of a regulation period.

“The field will be closer together.

“It is common practice in Formula 1 to copy successful concepts. And the longer the specifications remain stable, the more similar the cars will become. This automatically increases the level of performance.

“We will give it our all again next year. There will be some changes in the team, as there have been some departures. But we are well positioned and I believe that our team is capable of giving Max a car that will enable him to fight for the world championship again.”