Red Bull boss points to the "alarming" aspect of widening gap with F1 rivals

What began as a promising Sunday for Oracle Red Bull Racing at its home Grand Prix quickly unraveled in the first three corners. Max Verstappen's Austrian GP ended in bitter frustration after a collision with Mercedes rookie Kimi Antonelli, handing McLaren another commanding 1-2 finish and widening the gulf between the two teams.

After McLaren celebrated its eighth double podium of the year, Red Bull's team leadership sounded the alarm. Team advisor, Helmut Marko summed up the weekend's implications (via Racing News365):

"We could have fought for third place, our data showed. The McLarens were out of reach. Unbelievable, in this heat and this pace. And what is even more incomprehensible, that Piastri drives a number of laps within 1 or 2 seconds of Norris, without loss of performance, without tire problems. That shows the potential of that car. Half a second behind on this circuit is alarming."

Marko's assessment followed a nightmarish Austrian GP for the Milton Keynes outfit. Max Verstappen made a clean start when Antonelli, braking late into Turn 3, struck the Dutchman on the corner exit. The contact ended both their races.

Both drivers were out before they'd completed a single lap.

"Unfortunately for us this weekend there weren't a lot of positives and although we were unlucky with the yellow flag in qualifying yesterday and the incident today, we lacked pace throughout. We will have a look at everything we did from this weekend," Verstappen said post-race (via F1)

Meanwhile, Red Bull No. 22 Yuki Tsunoda finished 16th, two laps down. Max Verstappen feels his title chances are bleak, but he has promised to return stronger at Silverstone next week.

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"It was a horrible race for us": Red Bull lose ground to McLaren after home GP disaster

Red Bull Team Principal Christian Horner (R) talks with Team Consultant Dr Helmut Marko ahead of the Emilia-Romagna GP. Source: Getty

Red Bull's misery was compounded by the pace at the front. Once the race resumed on Lap 4 following a brief safety car, Lando Norris led Oscar Piastri into what became a private McLaren duel. The Woking outfit's dominance was made even more galling for the home team, as both Norris and Piastri traded fastest laps and kept Ferrari at arm's length.

In the final stint, Piastri and Norris were separated by just four seconds and had lapped everyone up to P6. Team Principal Christian Horner echoed Hemut Marko's concerns post-race (via F1):

"It was a horrible race for us and desperately unlucky for Max (Verstappen) to be taken out at Turn 3 when he had done nothing wrong... It's a shame. I don't think we would have been racing the McLarens today, but we would have been racing the Ferraris pretty hard... unfortunately for us it was a weekend to forget."

McLaren's ascendance has been sharp and unrelenting. While Canada offered a brief respite due to experimental upgrades, the Austrian GP proved the orange cars are back in full stride.

Max Verstappen of Red Bull Racing walks after a crash during the Austrian GP. Source: Getty

Their superiority was particularly painful for Red Bull in Spielberg, where the crowd, largely decked in Verstappen's orange, could only watch as Norris and Piastri dominated every stint.

"We will come with upgrades in the next two races, but this was a gala performance. It makes us say that we have to write off the championship. McLaren had one dip, that was in Canada because they brought new parts. But otherwise, it doesn't look good," Marko added (RN 365.NL)

Even new upgrades to Red Bull's floor edge failed to shift the dial.

For a team that once dominated the standings, Red Bull's position now looks fragile. The team is fourth in the Constructors' Standings with 162 points, falling behind McLaren's 417. Meanwhile, Verstappen remains third in the Drivers' leaderboard with 155 points, trailing both Oscar Piastri (216) and Lando Norris (201), and just nine ahead of George Russell (146).