The major Red Bull question: to be F1 champion or not?

Max Verstappen's victory in Brazil had major implications for the drivers' championship.

After pulling 18 points on Lando Norris, the Red Bull driver holds a very comfortable 62-point lead over his McLaren rival. It means another Verstappen triumph in Las Vegas, and a fourth consecutive title will be his.

The São Paulo GP also afforded Red Bull a timely boost after a run of 10 races without a win, which has resulted in the team falling to third in the constructors' championship. It now trails leaders McLaren by 49 points and is 13 behind second-placed Ferrari.

The biggest letdown for Red Bull, and the reason why it is on the brink of failing to retain its constructors' crown, has been the form of Sergio Perez. Over the past 15 grands prix, since the race in Miami, he has scored a miserable 48 points, and only eight of those in the last five.

Marko throwing in the towel

The consequence? Advisor Helmut Marko threw in the towel before the race at Interlagos. "We have lost the constructors' title," he said. "Ferrari is unbeatable in its current form and they could even overtake McLaren."

As is often the way, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner contradicted Marko. "Our focus is still on the constructors' championship," he countered. "We need Sergio to score in the last three races if we want to have any chance of challenging Ferrari or McLaren."

Fair is fair, Horner has a point. Red Bull cannot afford to forgo the constructors' championship, be it in in Las Vegas, Qatar or Abu Dhabi. Of course, the drivers' title has been the priority recently, but prize money is very important.

Marko hinted that Red Bull lost another seven million pounds in prize money in being relegated to third place by Ferrari. Naturally, Red Bull is not in financial trouble, far from it.

But when you're in the process of funding an engine programme for the first time and building a new wind tunnel, every penny counts.

In addition, employee bonuses are linked to the final position in the constructors' championship. When Red Bull has won the last two titles, every member of staff, and think mechanics, for example, receive a financial boost.

That is a significant reward for the vast amount of time spent on the road these days, given the expansion of the calendar to a record-breaking 24 grands prix this year.

Whilst Verstappen's lead appears to have done the job, for the team, from a sporting perspective, it will naturally want to finish as high as possible.

One eye on 2026?

There is, though, a significant advantage for Red Bull in finishing third in the constructors' championship, which comes in the form of the ATR (aerodynamic testing regulations).

Ahead of the new-for-2026 regulations, with new power units and chassis, the more any team gets to spend in the wind tunnel and utilising CFD (computational fluid dynamics) to help design the cars, the better. 

Under the regulations, and taking on board the current positions in the championship, Red Bull would be allowed to conduct 256 wind tunnel tests and 1,600 computer simulations in the first six months of 2025. By comparison, McLaren would have permission for 224 wind tunnel tests and 1,400 computer simulations, a difference of 12.5 per cent.

Everything now depends on the rest of the season. Does Red Bull still have a chance to take the title? Yes, but it is a tough ask, especially as McLaren will now single-mindedly focus its attention on the constructors' championship with Norris' hopes all but mathematically over, and let's not forget Ferrari is firmly in the mix.

So, what would best serve Red Bull? To be champion or not?

On sporting grounds, Red Bull will keep going full steam ahead for the constructors' championship. It would be a powerful signal if it still took the title after such a difficult season given the on-track issues and behind-the-scenes problems, and let's not forget the prize money.

For any team, a trophy is always the priority, but then it will likely have one eye on 2026.