Horner fires Red Bull warning over rival threat

Christian Horner believes the close qualifying sessions at the Circuit of the Americas are a sign of things to come for next season.

Red Bull has been dominant for much of the current campaign but has faced a challenge from rivals during the United States Grand Prix weekend.

The Milton Keynes-based squad could only manage sixth and ninth with Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez during Friday's qualifying session.

During Saturday's Sprint Qualifying, Verstappen took pole position - however, Ferrari's Charles Leclerc and Mercedes' Lewis Hamilton both lapped within a tenth of a second of the two-time World Champion.

Red Bull has been defeated just once so far this year when Ferrari secured victory at the Singapore Grand Prix.

A lot more intensity

Speaking to Sky Sports F1, Horner has stated that Red Bull has a fight on its hands for the remainder of the weekend in the US but also asserted that it is a sign that the pecking order will be closer next season.

“It definitely makes it a lot tighter,” he said. “It definitely makes those margins and you have to rely on your data a lot more.

“So the amount of simulations you're running in a race, there's a lot more intensity on that.

“But it's going to happen. When you have stable regulations, the cars and the teams will converge.

“I think this is a precursor to what we'll see next year where it's a much tighter field.”