Red Bull to launch important but not extreme Austrian GP upgrade

Red Bull is preparing a very important, but not extreme upgrade package for its home race, the Austrian Grand Prix.

Anticipation is high for Red Bull ahead of the team's home event, as the Milton Keynes-based outfit has completed its second major upgrade package of the year, which will debut at the Red Bull Ring.

The upgrade will undoubtedly be both important and significant. The components of the package are shrouded in secrecy, with the only leak suggesting that no single area of the car has been left untouched. 

Nevertheless, according to RacingNews365’s sources, too spectacular or extreme solutions should not be expected, and the reason is simple: the second major wave of innovations focused primarily on the most problematic area, weight reduction.

Estimates suggest that Red Bull started the 2026 season with the largest weight penalty among the top teams, carrying an extra 12 kilograms. 

The upgrade package introduced in Miami eliminated roughly half of this, while the Austrian developments will solve the problem entirely, allowing the team to focus fully on performance from now on. 

There is no doubt that Red Bull will try to get the most out of the upgraded car immediately, but as with any upgrade package, this will likely take time.

Red Bull urges upgrade caution

Although the upgrades introduced in Miami yielded immediate and meaningful improvements, team principal Laurent Mekies urged caution following the Barcelona race regarding excessive expectations for the upcoming development package.

“Everyone has been working very hard for that package," Mekies told select media, including RacingNews365. 

"And, you know, there is no doubt that the Austrian package alone will not be enough. We know we'll have some further steps needed. 

"But what is important is that on that continuous closing the gap trajectory that we have been on to since post-Japan, is that we continue to get closer, that we don't talk anymore about four tenths, but hopefully about less."

Red Bull currently occupies 4th place in the constructors' standings with 89 points, lagging significantly behind 3rd-placed McLaren, who hold a 52-point advantage over them.