Red Bull’s Continued Development Strategy in 2024
Helmut Marko, the motorsport advisor for Red Bull Racing, has dismissed McLaren’s claim that the team is sacrificing its 2026 preparations to focus on developing this year’s car. He pointed out that similar concerns were raised in 2021, when Toto Wolff of Mercedes expressed worries about competitiveness in the following season. However, Red Bull went on to win both the drivers’ and constructors’ titles in 2022.
While McLaren has halted development of its 2025 car and redirected all efforts toward the new regulations for 2026, Red Bull continues to introduce upgrades to its current model. Following the new floor in Monza and a revised front wing in Singapore, the team arrived in Mexico with another modified floor. The package also included tweaks to the bodywork to improve cooling, which is particularly important at the high altitude of Mexico City where the air is thinner.
Focus on Cooling Efficiency
The floor changes were officially listed as a “floor upgrade” in the FIA document, but Marko emphasized that the primary goal was to enhance cooling efficiency. “The upgrade mainly targeted cooling efficiency — because of the thinner air here,” he explained.
When asked if the floor itself had been updated from the Monza version, Marko confirmed that it was part of the same package, along with the cooling adjustments. He added that only Max Verstappen received the new components for the F1 weekend in Mexico, while his teammate Yuki Tsunoda ran a slightly older specification.
Some competitors have been surprised by Red Bull’s continued updates to its 2025 car at this stage of the season. McLaren boss Andrea Stella suggested that such an approach would heavily impact McLaren’s 2026 project if they attempted the same. “Perhaps they are happier [at Red Bull] to give up a little bit of 2026, because they might have some other issues for 2026 whereby they say, let’s focus on 2025,” he said.
Red Bull’s Philosophy of Continuous Development
Marko laughed off the idea that Red Bull may be over-developing this year’s car and paying a price for it next year. “It was the same story in 2021,” he recalled. “Toto was really worried that we wouldn’t be competitive in 2022.” At that time, F1 was also on the verge of a regulation change, yet Red Bull continued to develop its 2021 car deep into the season and still managed to win both world titles in 2022.
A crucial difference now is that Red Bull will be changing engine suppliers next season with its in-house engine project. According to Marko, the approach of developing the car as long as possible is part of Red Bull’s DNA. “It’s part of our philosophy that we, whenever the rules change, are working as long as we can to stay competitive. That was the same for the last three changes when new regulations came. So if they don’t have anything else to worry about, then okay,” he laughed.
Rejection of Sacrificing 2026 for 2024
Marko also rejected McLaren’s suggestion that Red Bull might be willing to sacrifice its 2026 project for a shot at the drivers’ title this year. “We know what we’re doing,” he said.
This decision relates to the rationale behind Red Bull’s extended development. Team principal Laurent Mekies recently explained that Red Bull wanted to validate its tools and methodologies before fully committing to 2026. Extracting more performance from the RB21, he said, was the best way to confirm those processes and avoid going blindly into the winter.
Balancing Act Between 2025 and 2026
McLaren, by contrast, hit a plateau with the MCL39, making it logical to shift all resources to the new rules. Regardless of these philosophies, the overhaul in regulations presents every F1 team with a difficult balancing act. Resources and personnel must be split between both projects — a choice made even trickier by the budget cap and ATR system (with limited wind tunnel time and CFD simulations).
Marko acknowledged the challenge but said Red Bull is well-prepared: “It needs an exact plan and very disciplined people, which we have. So we don’t think there is a handicap for 2026.”
