Red Bull make Newey confession after alarming loss of form

Red Bull advisor Dr Helmut Marko has said that outgoing chief technical officer Adrian Newey's "experience and knowledge" could have helped stem the tide of McLaren's surge to dominance in F1.

Red Bull started the season with a comfortable delta to its rivals and looked set to enjoy another year as imperious as 2023.

However, the Milton Keynes team has struggled to develop the RB20. Any upgrades the reigning constructors' champion has delivered have proved inadequate and adversely impacted the balance of the car.

This has led some to highlight how Newey's resignation has coincided with Red Bull's gradual and prolonged loss of form.

McLaren, meanwhile, has forged a development path that has seen it add a string of effective updates since the Miami Grand Prix.

Those have not only eradicated Red Bull's previously-healthy performance advantage, they have seen the MCL38 become the class of the F1 field.

Marko does not, however, believe Newey's departure - which was announced in the run-up to the round in Florida - is the root of the issues Red Bull is now facing.

He highlighted the "broad base" the team has to draw from. Although, he did not rule it out as having an impact on some level.

"Newey is no longer fully involved in the process," the Austrian told Sky Sports Germany. "That is a factor we have to look at, but we have a broad base.

"It's true that his experience and knowledge could certainly have helped in this situation."

This has seen the points gap in the constructors' standings between the two teams fall from a high of 115 points to just 30.

To make matters worse, Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez will line up for the Italian Grand Prix in seventh and eighth, respectively. McLaren, on the other hand, locked out the front row in qualifying.

Although unlikely, if all four drivers finish where they will start at Monza, the Woking squad will take the lead in the championship, even if one of the Red Bull's picks up the extra point for fastest lap.

"Thank goodness this is Monza, where you can overtake," Marko said. It's going to be a very, very intense, tough race.

However, the 81-year-old does not believe McLaren will be in for a straightforward afternoon in Northern Italy.

"I don't think anyone can pull away. Not even the two McLaren cars, unless they do a great slipstreaming game and don't fight each other.

"But not everything is lost, unless we have the same performance in the race, then it looks bad."