Christian Horner reveals key to Red Bull dominance in F1 rivals dig

Horner in persconferentie Hongarije — Photo: © LAT Images

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Horner reveals key to Red Bull dominance in F1 rivals dig

Mercedes are among those desperately trying to catch the world champions

Sam Cook Digital Journalist

Sports Journalist who has been covering motorsport since 2023

Sunday 3 December 2023 18:57 Updated: 10:12

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Christian Horner has insisted that Red Bull’s ability to win races during the seasons in which the team struggled were key in their journey to Formula 1 dominance.

The Milton Keynes-based team spent seven seasons at the beginning of the hybrid era scratching around for ways in which they could catch up to the then-dominant Mercedes outfit.

In that time, Red Bull managed to claim 17 victories, averaging more than two per season, despite the superiority of their rivals.

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Now, the shoe is on the other foot, and Mercedes are desperately trying to match Red Bull after two years in which they have been completely dominant.

During that period, the world champions have won 38 of the 44 races and Max Verstappen has broken multiple records on his way to three consecutive drivers' titles.

Mercedes, on the other hand, have clinched just one victory in that time, courtesy of George Russell at the 2022 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen cruised to a third consecutive world championship title in 2023

Christian Horner has seen his team up on the top step of the podium at 38 of the last 44 races

George Russell was the last Mercedes driver to win a Grand Prix, at the Brazilian GP in 2022

Horner's verdict

Horner believes it is vital for teams to claim regular wins during seasons in which they are clearly not challenging for the title, in order to maintain morale.

"I think it's all about winning," the Red Bull team principal told Sky Sports after the Abu Dhabi GP.

"It's all about achieving a goal and I think we went through some difficult years and we never lost sight of what our target was.

"In those difficult years, we were always picking up wins here and there, we never lost that fighting spirit.

"We still operate very much as an old-school race team and we push the limits. We push ourselves and I think nobody wants to let the side down.

"As soon as Honda came back with a competitive engine and suddenly we were in a position to really capitalise on that. I have to pay tribute to them for the role that they’ve played in the reliability that we’ve seen as well."

Red Bull Max Verstappen Lewis Hamilton Mercedes Formula 1 Christian Horner