Red Bull Racing has dominated Formula 1 in recent years. After clinching the 2021 F1 Drivers Championship at the last minute, it went on to win back-to-back constructors and drivers crowns with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez at the wheel. This year hasn’t been as glorious for the team, however, and the 2024 Mexican Grand Prix showed just how far the team has fallen.
Anyone who watched this weekend’s Mexican Grand Prix at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez in Mexico City was in for a treat. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz clinched a dominant win, the McLaren of Oscar Piastri raced through the pack and we even had a tidy duel from the Mercedes duo of Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.
One team missing from the sharp end of proceedings was Red Bull Racing. That was thanks to a 20-second penalty that was handed to Verstappen after he forced his championship rival, Lando Norris, off track. For his teammate, the misfortune went even further back, and poor qualifying meant Perez was stuck at the back fighting against backmarkers all day. It was a weekend to forget for the Milton Keynes-based outfit.
The moves that earned Verstappen his two 10-second penalties were inexcusable. Just a week after he was caught up in controversies for running drivers wide, he pulled exactly the same move again in Mexico and a second, (very) late lunge on Norris saw both drivers leave the track. It was downright dangerous driving from the triple-world-champ.
As for Perez, he looked like a desperate man racing for his life when he battled against the new signing at junior team Visa Cash App Racing Bull, Liam Lawson. The pair scrapped and traded blows while fighting, which left Perez with damage that it could be said ruined his home race, had he not qualified in a lowly 18th place.
The performance of both drivers showed how far Red Bull has fallen since its dominance last year, when the team picked up all-but-one race victories over the 2023 Formula 1 season.
This is a downfall that’s been brewing since before the 2024 season even kicked off. Prior to Red Bull’s car launch, the team was embroiled in a scandal centering around team boss Christian Horner and allegations of inappropriate behavior towards a Red Bull staffer.
At the time, Verstappen’s own father warned that the scandal could tear the team apart, and within six months that appeared to be true. Famed car designer Adrian Newey has left Red Bull after penning all six of its championship-winning cars. This was soon followed by the news that Red Bull’s head of race strategy Will Courtenay would also be departing to take on a new role as sporting director of McLaren, reports Autosport.
The departures were followed by a drop off in performance from Red Bull, which almost rivals Mercedes fall from grace in 2022. Verstappen hasn’t won a race since Spain back in June and Perez’s best result for the year is just second, which he has managed on only three occasions over 20 races.
These poor performances mean that Red Bull’s position at the top of the standings is faltering. It dropped into second place after McLaren found its form over the summer break and Ferrari’s race win yesterday pushed the Italian team ahead as well.
In the drivers’ competition, Verstappen is still sitting pretty at the top of the standings, but his sixth-place finish in Mexico coupled with Norris’ podium means the Briton is less than 50 points away from the Dutchman with four races left to run.
At the start of this year, you’d have been foolish to put your money on anything other than another year of Red Bull dominance in F1. Now, after 20 races, it’s beginning to look as though some serious changes need to be made if the team wants to cling onto its trophies for another year.