Max Verstappen’s Italian Grand Prix victory was the kind of performance that silenced doubts around Red Bull’s season. The Dutchman stormed to his 66th career win at Monza, marking his third victory of 2025 and the first under new team principal Laurent Mekies.The win came at the temple of speed, where Verstappen had struggled 12 months earlier, qualifying only seventh and finishing sixth. This time, he delivered a complete weekend from pole. For Mekies, who succeeded Christian Horner earlier this season, the breakthrough carried added weight."Max did just a perfection, perfect weekend. Such a strong weekend, it put us there. We were not anticipating to have a pace advantage in the race, but it turned out to be the case. We were expecting a defence race and trying to work out scenarios on how to defend against these guys. Ultimately, we had a pace advantage today," Mekies said post-race (via F1)From the opening laps, Max Verstappen made it clear he had answers to every challenge. After briefly giving up the lead to Lando Norris to avoid a penalty for cutting the chicane, Verstappen responded on lap four with a move around the outside into Turn 1. Once in clear air, he never looked back.The four-time champion continued to build his lead with consecutive fastest laps and executed a flawless pit stop on lap 37. He rejoined in third but quickly sliced back through the McLarens, reclaiming the lead within 10 laps. The victory was built on a technical gamble, running the RB21 lower than before, despite a balance risk. The Dutchman pushed his engineers to hold that setup, a decision that eventually paid off."Obviously, the wing is working well. On top of that, it is fair to say that on Saturday we have tried to step down with Max at the very end of FP3. And whilst it looked a lot more difficult to get the balance right with that lower level, Max has been very strong and good at pushing us to keep it on the car and to find other solutions to give him the balance back," Mekies explained.Max Verstappen’s margin of +19.207s at the flag was the largest of the season. He also set the fastest lap in F1 history, adding to the significance of the weekend.Laurent Mekies credits Max Verstappen's win to Red Bull's 'hard work in the dark' at Milton KeynesMax Verstappen (1) during Italian Grand Prix practice. Source: GettyFor Laurent Mekies, the win was also about timing. He took charge in a turbulent season where Red Bull swapped one of its race seats after just two rounds, and he replaced Christian Horner after 20 years of continuity. Despite Max Verstappen’s brilliance, Oracle Red Bull Racing arrived at Monza with only two wins from the first 13 races and sat fourth in the Constructors’ standings, trailing Ferrari and Mercedes."In this sort of moment you think to the team back in Milton Keynes, the tough start of the season. When things are not working the way you would like them to work, when you are missing that ultimate pace, you question everything. That’s the way we are, that’s the way the competition is. You question everything and what is great in the team is that they kept an open mind... very much giving them back the credit of many weeks, many months of hard work in the dark," Mekies said (via Motorsport Week)Much of that credit has gone to technical director Pierre Wache, whose adjustments helped close the gap to McLaren. On Sunday, Verstappen consistently had three to four tenths in hand over Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, the clearest sign yet of progress.230 of Red Bull’s 239 points this season have come from his No. 1 car. Teammate Yuki Tsunoda accounts for the other nine. That disparity shows the challenge the team faces and the dependency on its star driver. The Monza win puts Verstappen 94 points behind leader Oscar Piastri and 63 behind Lando Norris in the Drivers’ standings, underscoring the gap still remaining.Next up is Baku, a track where Max Verstappen won in 2022. After Monza, though, Red Bull arrives with renewed momentum and perhaps the sense that their season has finally turned a corner.