Red Bull 'questioned everything' to return Max Verstappen to winning ways

Laurent Mekies has revealed Red Bull 'questioned everything' to ensure Max Verstappen could again be competitive and win races this year following the difficulties it has endured with its RB21.

It is now well known that the issues with the RB21 are rooted in the early days of last season's RB20, despite Verstappen going on to clinch his fourth consecutive F1 drivers' championship.

Although Verstappen won seven of the first 10 grands prix last year, he then embarked on a 10-race winless run, his worst drought since 2020 that threatened to derail his title hopes in the face of Lando Norris' challenge, only to hold on and clinch another crown.

After winning the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix in May, it appeared as if Verstappen's wait for another victory could potentially run to the end of the season, only for Red Bull to finally find a piece to the puzzle that has been missing from its car this year.

A new floor was unveiled for the Italian Grand Prix at Monza last weekend, providing aero grip and balance that had previously been lacking, allowing Verstappen to take the chequered flag by 19 seconds, the largest margin of victory seen this year.

Technical director Pierre Waché said the floor had delivered more performance than anticipated. It is hoped Verstappen will now be competitive at the majority of the remaining eight races.

Speaking to the media, including RacingNews365, in reflecting on Verstappen's win at Monza, Mekies said: "In this sort of moment, you think of the team back in Milton Keynes and it's tough start to the season.

"When things are not working the way you would like them to work, when you are missing that ultimate pace, you question everything. That's the way we are, the way the competition is.

"What is great is that the team kept an open mind. They did question everything in a very constructive way, and it was a lot of hard work.

"You don't always get the positive feedback from the track as we got [at Monza]. But they've been pushing hard, not giving up, and whilst Monza is a specific layout, blah, blah, blah, it very much gave them back the credit of many weeks, many months of hard work."

At Monza, it was only Verstappen who ran the new floor. Team-mate Yuki Tsunoda ran the previous spec he damaged during the grand prix.

It is fully expected that the Japanese driver will take on the new version for next weekend's race in Azerbaijan, particularly as the team will lean towards a lower downforce setup to assist with the longest straight on the F1 calendar.