McLaren F1 boss Zak Brown claims Red Bull ‘turmoil’ will cause downfall

christian horner, helmut marko, red bull — Photo: © IMAGO

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McLaren boss claims Red Bull ‘turmoil’ will cause downfall

McLaren CEO Zak Brown is back at it again with the Red Bull criticism

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Thursday 18 July 2024 12:28 Updated: 15:13

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has once again taken aim at the Red Bull camp following what has been a rather messy season for the reigning champions of Formula 1.

So far in 2024, McLaren have gone from strength to strength, with Lando Norris claiming his maiden victory in Miami, and the team building momentum to catch both Ferrari and Red Bull in the constructors' championship.

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Following a run of strong performances in the papaya machinery, Norris clinched second place in the drivers' standings, stalking the Red Bull of Max Verstappen.

After an unfortunate collision between the two rivals in Austria and questionable strategy from the woking-based outfit costing Norris a home win, it is clear McLaren still have a lot of work to do to take the top spot.

CEO Zak Brown on the other hand seems focused on the Red Bull off-track action, commenting on the team's internal issues once again.

Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri both led the British Grand Prix at various points in the race

How has the Red Bull drama unfolded?

The tension at Red Bull appears to have stemmed from the alleged 'inappropriate behaviour' complaint made against team principal Christian Horner by a female employee.

Horner was cleared by an internal investigation, but Zak Brown expressed dismay over how the investigation was handled.

Following the case, Jos Verstappen, father of Red Bull's star driver Max, called for Horner to exit the team and ever since, the rift between the two appears to be unrepairable.

What was Zak Brown's Red Bull verdict?

Despite the drama, Red Bull remains unaffected for now, with Max Verstappen still leading the drivers' championship.

Yet Brown believes a manifestation of these issues could be on the horizon.

Speaking to media, he revealed: "I think the turmoil will have more of a mid- to longer-term impact,"

"Adrian Newey ... this car was done last year, what they are racing now was done when everything was fine."

Zak Brown has taken a frequent swipe at Red Bull's team issues this season

With new regulations set to switch up the order in 2026, Brown predicted things could go downhill for Red Bull.

"It's more '26 when you've got a new engine coming, what's going on with the driver front - that's where you potentially are going to see the lack of stability that appears to be there maybe come through a little bit.

"Winning holds things together and, as that becomes more of a challenge for them, that's where you might see some more fractures in various relationships inside that camp" he added.

Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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