F1 2023: Horner Surprised by Lack of Competitiveness

The Red Bull team boss believes that rivals are unable to give a tough fight on the track. 

Christian Horner, Formula One team Red Bull’s boss, believes that although credit must be given to Red Bull’s performance, the highlight of their success is the failure of rival teams such as Scuderia Ferrari and Mercedes-AMG. For the record, in the ongoing Formula One championship, Red Bull has so far won all races and finished in one-two position.

Red Bull’s absolute dominance has somewhat made the sport a bit boring to some fans because it has become too predictable. However, Horner has taken a dig at the rival teams for being less competitive.

Horner’s statement

Speaking to reporters, the Red Bull boss said, "We feel that we’ve made a good step from the (previous car) but the kind of step that you would expect, it’s more that it feels like others have lost ground."

"I think it surprised us that the others have perhaps under-delivered compared to where they were last year, but no doubt they will be looking to address that, and I’m sure starting in Imola we’re going to see big updates starting to come through," Horner added.

Reacting to the big upgrades that Mercedes-AMG and Scuderia Ferrari are planning to introduce at Imola this Sunday, Horner said Red Bull is keen to put pressure on the opponents.

Horner also acknowledged Red Bull’s dominance, as the team accumulated 122 points in a championship that still has several races left.

The Englishman took pride in his team’s performance by saying, "We’ve got a great car, we’ve got a great team, we’ve got two great drivers, but still a long way to go. Let’s reserve judgement until after we see what it turns out to be at Imola, (Monaco) and Barcelona."

Russell’s comment

On the other hand, despite finishing fourth in the W14 Mercedes-AMG at the Miami Grand Prix, George Russell displayed his displeasure.

The youngster said, "There is a lot of expectations on Imola, but at the end of the day, we finished 30-odd seconds behind the leaders today. I am sure it is going to take a step in the right direction, but it is not going to transform things. Let’s hope it does. The car is a little unpredictable at the moment, so hopefully, it exceeds our expectations in the next race, but it is going to be a long journey."

For the unversed souls, Mercedes-AMG is planning to introduce a new floorboard and front suspension at the upcoming Sunday race in a bid to match Red Bull’s strong straight-line pace.