Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has promised that his team will come out fighting in the second half of the 2021 Formula 1 season. Max Verstappen lost the lead in the Drivers' Championship to Lewis Hamilton after more misfortune at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where he was hit by Lando Norris in a collision caused by Valtteri Bottas. Red Bull also face a 12-point deficit to Mercedes in the Constructors' Standings, with Sergio Perez scoring no points in the last two rounds. "At no point did we feel absolutely in control [of the championship]," Horner told RacingNews365.com and other select members of the press. "We've won six races in the first half of the year. The races that we haven't scored at, if you look at Azerbaijan wasn't Max's fault, Silverstone wasn't Max's fault, Hungary wasn't Max's fault. "Our luck will change over the length of a season it will balance itself out, and I'm looking forward to the second half of the year. "I think the whole team deserves a break, drivers will get a good bit of time off and believe you me, we're going to come out fighting in the second half of this championship. It's going to be interesting." Red Bull's poor weekend in Budapest was due to a mistake from Bottas at Turn 1 on the opening lap of the Hungarian GP. The Mercedes driver indirectly caused severe damage to Verstappen and collected Sergio Perez in a secondary collision. Red Bull are set for grid penalties later in their 2021 campaign whilst Bottas has been handed a five-grid place penalty for the next race at the Belgian GP for his actions. Horner believes the Finn will be back in position very quickly at Spa-Francorchamps. "The penalty is what it is," said Horner. "If it's a track like the Hungaroring, it's obviously a bit more consequential than a track likes Spa. I would think he'll be back in position by the end of the second lap."
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