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Red Bull team principal Christian Horner reiterated the importance of spending resources on upgrades for the RB18 that are 'really worth the money'.
The Briton's comments came after Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto pointed out that Red Bull has been working hard on upgrades right from the start of the 2022 season in Bahrain.
In a season with a strict $140 million budget for all teams to operate under, Binotto is hoping this ends up costing Horner and Co. in the long run. After the 2022 F1 Miami GP, the Italian said:
“They have developed the car since the start of the season, which we didn’t really. They have spent money as well, so I hope at some stage with the budget cap they will stop developing while we have some upgrades available.”
Horner is adamant that this will not happen as the title race intensifies between his team and the Scuderia. In an interview with motorsport.com, the 48-year-old said:
“You have to be very careful about where you put the upgrades in. That’s because of the budget cap. So we have to be sure the things we take with us are really worth the money. The budget cap makes it very difficult to continuously introduce upgrades. That means you have to choose strategically where you can and do upgrades. Inflation only makes that more true.”
The upgrades brought from the factory back in Milton Keynes have helped Max Verstappen reduce the early deficit between his team and Ferrari after an unreliable start to the season.
"These will be Red Bull's World Championships" - Martin Brundle warns Ferrari of the cost of losing car development race
Former F1 driver-turned-analyst Martin Brundle feels Ferrari will need to make some upgrades of their own to the F1-75 or risk falling behind in the title race with Red Bull.
In his column for Sky Sports following the 2022 F1 Miami GP, the Briton wrote:
“Once again, Charles Leclerc and his Ferrari were the fastest combo on the track to secure pole position, but also once again, Ferrari had no answer to Red Bull’s prodigious straight-line speed, with or without the DRS rear wing open. Unless they fix that with less high-speed drag then these will be Red Bull’s World Championships.”
Charles Leclerc himself has asked Ferrari to keep pushing for upgrades after his P2 finish at the Miami International Autodrome. The Scuderia is expected to bring upgrades of its own at the forthcoming 2022 F1 Spanish GP at the Circuit de Catalunya.
