Red Bull Technical Director Pierre Wache reckons the team can “find quite a bit of performance” with its 2024 Formula 1 car as it bids to keep the competition behind.
The Austrian outfit commenced the campaign appearing to continue its dominance from last term as Max Verstappen was victorious from four of the first five races.
However, Red Bull’s advantage at the sharp end has been eradicated over recent months as McLaren, Ferrari and now also Mercedes have all toppled the champions.
But McLaren slipping up in various departments and Max Verstappen’s individual brilliance has seen Red Bull retain a comfortable advantage in both championships.
Nevertheless, Wache has admitted that Red Bull is investigating how it can overcome its rivals’ rising threat heading into the final 18 months under these regulations.
“To be quite honest, at the beginning of this season the other teams were not as close as we expected,” Wache told De Telegraaf.
“But it seems that the development of certainly McLaren, and in certain areas also that of Mercedes, has been successful.
“McLaren has taken a giant step forward since the beginning of May, in Miami.
“It is true that the others have moved closer and we have to come up with updates, which can ensure that we get an edge again.”
Verstappen has urged Red Bull to not treat being caught up this season as “normal” as the team introduced a revised floor design on his RB20 charger at Silverstone.
However, mixed weather conditions across the weekend and damage from a trip across the gravel in Q1 hampered the Dutchman’s advances as he salvaged second.
But Wache has insisted that getting concerned over the diminishing gap would be the wrong approach as Red Bull is set to introduce updates in Budapest next week.
“You can think up and develop all kinds of things, which sometimes takes months, but once on the track we whether such a component brings us what we think,” he said.
“And not only that, also whether the driver feels that and he can use that material.
“It is very important that we see that it gives us lap time, because it then also affects our plans for the future.
“It’s very simple: in previous weeks we have not always been dominant. But there is no point in pressing the panic button right then.
“I look at it in two ways. Operationally, in the short term, asking how we can make the car perform in the best possible way. And then in the factory looking at the longer term.
“You can speed things up, but panicking is not the right attitude. We are working with 300 engineers. If you then change your mind every five minutes, that is the wrong way.”
Red Bull surprised onlookers when it launched a car boasting several innovations marking a departure from the dominant processor which won 19 races last season.
Wache has explained that Red Bull endeavoured to raise the bar in pursuit of incremental gains and he is optimistic there is much more untapped potential to unlock.
“We have definitely taken risks,” he conceded. “And yes, then you can also screw up completely.
“But Formula 1 is such a competitive environment and standing still is going backwards.
“The regulations have been the same for a few years now and there are a lot of restrictions, so we put in a lot of work for only small margins.
“I definitely think we can continue to develop this car and find quite a bit of performance in the near future.”
Meanwhile, the Frenchman has credited Verstappen’s role in car development as he documented how the reigning F1 champion delivers feedback that is productive.
“Look, someone can also say to me: ‘I want a faster car’. Then I think: ‘that’s easy! More grip, less drag and more power’,” he said.
“Thanks for that, but of course that doesn’t help me. Anyone can think of that. But Max is very specific in his input.
“What exactly he needs during a particular moment in a corner and in which areas he feels less comfortable.
“His race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase translates that back to us, so to speak, so that we can try to incorporate that into a physical part.
“Max is very clear and I like that. We can think of all sorts of things, but it’s the driver who has to deal with it.”
