Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner says the squad will treat the second half of the Formula 1 campaign as a “reset” after a mixed 2017 campaign so far.
Red Bull entered the new season confident that overhauled regulations could enable it to compete for overall honours, but it was immediately cut adrift from Mercedes and Ferrari.
Red Bull has emerged as third best, behind the lead duo, but comfortably in front of the midfield pack, though claimed victory in a dramatic Azerbaijan Grand Prix, courtesy of Daniel Ricciardo.
Horner believes Red Bull can approach the next nine events with a fresh mindset, having made progress over recent races with the updates installed on the RB13.
“I think we're behind where we want to be, but we're working hard to get onto the front foot,” Horner explained in an interview with Red Bull’s website.
“I think we are going to treat the second half of the season as a reset and see what we can achieve over the next nine Grands Prix.
“We've managed since the beginning of the European season to really gain momentum.
“So going into the summer break, six podiums, including a grand prix victory and third in the championship is where we currently sit.
“I think the most pleasing aspect is how the car has developed, particularly, as I say, from Spain onwards, and in recent races we've started to have really competitive outings.”
Horner stressed that anything Red Bull can learn from the remainder of this season can assist its cause in 2018, due to the stability in the technical regulations.
“I think the team is working very well collectively,” he said.
“We're getting performance on the car, we've got some venues coming up that hopefully will suit us and we'll keep pushing all the way to the final race in Abu Dhabi.
“There is a big gap between us and the cars ahead but there are opportunities in the remaining races and we're going to be going all out to try and achieve what we can.
“Obviously the lessons you learn apply to next year anyway.”
Red Bull holds third in the Constructors’ Championship with 184 points, 134 points behind Ferrari, and 83 clear of Force India.
