Red Bull Formula 1 boss Christian Horner asserts that the team’s sole defeat in the Singapore Grand Prix this year has left it “humbled that there’s still something to strive for”.
After winning 10 of the remaining 11 races of last year, Red Bull extended its competitive advantage over the competition to remain unbeaten across the first 14 rounds of 2023.
That unprecedented streak witnessed the Milton-Keynes-based outfit break McLaren’s consecutive wins benchmark from 1988, while Max Verstappen also surpassed Sebastian Vettel’s previous record of nine consecutive victories with a 10-race triumphant run between Miami and Monza.
However, Red Bull were denied the historic feat of a clean sweep in Singapore, when set-up troubles saw both Verstappen and team-mate Sergio Perez qualify outside the top 10.
Having rebounded to win all of the remaining seven races, Carlos Sainz’s Singapore win remained the only time a non-Red Bull driver stood on the top step of the podium in 2023.
Following Verstappen’s victory in the season finale in Abu Dhabi, Horner was asked whether there was a hint of annoyance still remaining over its slip-up in Singapore.
“No, it leaves you humbled that there’s still something to strive for,” he retorted. “It’s a useful lesson that things can change quickly. Singapore was a standout weekend.
“You guys [the media] have been asking me since race three if I think we can win all the races this year. To win 21 out of 22 races is insanity. For Max to have led over 1000 laps, for him to have won 19 races… we have broken McLaren’s record from 1988, broken Seb’s record with Max from 2013, the win ratios, all the percentages that he’s hit.
“This car will go down in history, certainly for a considerable period of time as the most dominant car in Formula One history.”
However, Horner denies that Red Bull will be resting on its laurels over the winter, insisting that the stable regulations for 2024 will ensure that the entire grid converges.
“We saw that in 2020 with Mercedes, if you remember that was their most dominant year and yet we were able to beat them in 2021,” he pointed out.
“There was a subtle rule change but I think nothing stands still and we had competitors coming closer at different venues and I’m sure concepts will converge, stable regulations always concertina, so I don’t think we will ever be able to repeat the season we’ve had.
“Hopefully we can take the lessons from RB19 and apply them into RB20 and come up with a car that we can defend these titles with.”
The continuation of Red Bull’s superiority was aided by an ever-evolving pecking order which saw multiple teams emerge as the second force on any given race weekend.
“It’s been different people at different times, hasn’t it? It’s swung around from McLaren having a surge, Ferrari having a surge, Mercedes turning up at one point, so it’s moved around from venue to venue,” Horner explained regarding Red Bull’s competition.
Horner also heaped praise on the efforts of Verstappen, who prevailed in 16 of the last 17 rounds to emphatically wrap up his third title with a 290-point margin over Perez.
“And particularly Max this year has been outstanding and the way he has been on top of the car, the strategy, the tyres,” he added.
“We almost didn’t need the strategists today because he seemed to be doing the strategy for both the cars. But as the strategist pointed out to me, he is considerably more expensive than she is. His capacity within the car is quite outstanding.”
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