Helmut Marko has revealed Red Bull is struggling with top speed in the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix because it is stuck with a higher drag rear wing compared to its rivals.
Max Verstappen and team-mate Sergio Perez wound up a dismal 17th and 19th respectively in FP2, not befitting Red Bull’s usual standards.
With the Las Vegas Strip Circuit boasting super long straights, a Monza-style downforce configuration is required.
But Red Bull has made a blunder in bringing a higher-drag spec rear wing compared to its competitors, resulting in a 7km/h deficit on the straights compared to the likes of Mercedes and McLaren.
Marko revealed via Motorsport.com that “we don’t have another rear wing, a smaller rear wing, as we see it on our competitors.
“It would be more helpful, for sure.”
Red Bull reportedly tried measures to mitigate its blunder, including removing the Gurney Flap on the rear wing and more experiments will be needed.
This is because Marko confirmed Red Bull won’t be able to fly a low-drag rear wing to Vegas overnight, putting it on the back foot for the remainder of the weekend.
Red Bull Las Vegas GP issues compounded by poor tyre performance
Verstappens’s woe was compounded by his Red Bull RB20 failing to extract pace from the Pirelli rubber underneath it.
The extremely cool temperatures at the Las Vegas Strip Circuit were going to prove a challenge for all teams and Red Bull looked to be among the competitors struggling the most.
Speaking after the second practice session in Sin City, Verstappen expressed Red Bull’s difficulties in getting the tyres to work effectively.
“Yeah, [it was] slippery,” he said. I think we struggled a lot with making the tyres work, over one lap especially.
“The long run I think started off a bit more competitive, but even there I think we need to fine-tune a few things. The one-lap pace is quite far off.
“Of course, it’s quite unique conditions around here and it’s very cold, but at the end of the day it’s the same for everyone, so we need to try and understand what we’re doing wrong at the moment.”
Verstappen expressed that the balance of his Red Bull, an issue that has thwarted him for the majority of the 2024 F1 campaign wasn’t behind his problems, which were all purely tyre related.
“It’s just we have no grip – it’s like driving on ice at the moment,” he exclaimed.
READ MORE – FIA issue technical directive ahead of Las Vegas GP after Red Bull complaints
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