Friday at the Spanish Grand Prix revealed a Red Bull team further from the front than many expected, particularly over a single lap. However, part of that performance deficit appears to stem from a fascinating technical factor: the RB22 is deploying its electrical energy in a significantly different way compared to its rivals.
The car struggled on Barcelona’s long straights, where its hybrid assistance cuts out earlier than competing power units, while at the same time delivering energy in different sections of the lap. The data suggests that, alongside finding more stability through the high-speed corners, Red Bull may also need to rethink its energy deployment strategy.
Barcelona exposes RB22 weaknesses
The nearly nine-tenths deficit seen on Friday tells the story of an unusual day for Red Bull. Max Verstappen finished only sixth in FP2, while Isack Hadjar was even further back in tenth place.
The Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya presents a very different challenge compared to Monaco and Canada. Those circuits featured a higher concentration of slow-speed corners, allowing teams to make setup compromises that are far less effective on a track dominated by high-speed sections and aerodynamic demands.
As Max Verstappen had already predicted before the weekend, Barcelona’s fast corners are exposing some of the RB22’s limitations. The challenge is not simply about being competitive in those sections but about finding a balance that works across both the fast and slow parts of the lap. That balance is what makes Barcelona such a difficult circuit for engineers.
Another factor is grip. As seen during the 2025 season, the combination of hot temperatures and abrasive asphalt causes significant tyre sliding, making mechanical grip particularly important.
Even the hard compound, despite being one step softer than last year’s version, continues to slide excessively and provides limited grip. This is one reason why teams are already considering two-stop race strategies using the softer compounds while avoiding the hardest tyre altogether.
For teams suffering from a lack of grip, these issues become even more visible over a single lap. Keeping the tyres within their ideal operating window becomes increasingly difficult, especially through Barcelona’s high-energy corners where temperatures and lateral loads rise rapidly.
Max Verstappen highlights grip concerns
Speaking after the session, Max Verstappen focused on the RB22’s lack of grip, which he believes is affecting performance in every area of the circuit.
“We’re lacking grip in the fast corners, the slow corners and the medium-speed corners. We’re behind everywhere. We’re not where we want to be. I think there are clear limitations with the car. It’s very aggressive on the tyres and here the grip level is low. At the moment, that’s not helping us,” explained the four-time world champion.
Looking at the race pace data, the situation appears slightly more encouraging over long runs than over a single lap. The tyres seem to stabilize more effectively over longer stints, and rival teams also struggled with degradation. Even so, Verstappen remains cautious.
“If you’re slow over one lap, you’re slow in the race as well. That’s what I see when we do the long runs. In the last races there were only low-speed corners. I think we’re a bit more competitive when we come to a track that offers a bit of everything. But it still looks like we’re one step behind.”
Red Bull’s hybrid strategy stands out
The most interesting discovery from the data concerns how Red Bull is managing energy deployment throughout the lap.
Examining the top-speed figures from the main straight through to the exit of Turn 9 reveals a deficit of at least 10 km/h compared to its rivals. That gap then grows even larger when the RB22 runs out of electrical energy earlier than competing cars.
Of the nearly nine-tenths Verstappen lost over the lap, more than two-tenths were surrendered on the main straight alone.
However, the issue does not appear to be simply a conservative engine mode. Instead, Red Bull seems to have developed a fundamentally different approach to energy usage. Through Turn 3, Verstappen lifts off the throttle more than almost any other driver. While this may partly reflect the car’s lack of grip, it also allows him to save electrical energy.
The result becomes obvious approaching Turn 4. While most drivers are reaching speeds just above 285 km/h before braking, Verstappen exceeds 300 km/h, enjoying an advantage of roughly 15 km/h. This indicates that the MGU-K is still deploying energy at that point, extending electrical assistance further than rival systems.
A similar pattern appears before Turn 10. Although the Red Bull struggles to carry speed through Turn 9, forcing Verstappen to lift more than his competitors, the acceleration zone toward Turn 10 clearly reveals a shortage of electrical assistance compared to other cars, costing approximately one-tenth of a second.
A different approach in the final sector
The same unusual behaviour can also be seen through the final corners.
Before the weekend, it was already anticipated that different driving approaches through Barcelona’s fast corners could significantly influence energy deployment. That prediction appears particularly relevant to Verstappen’s RB22.
Between Turns 13 and 14, the Dutch driver carries more than 15 km/h extra speed compared to the Mercedes and McLaren drivers. This suggests an approach that allows Red Bull to maintain hybrid support for longer during this phase of the lap.
While Mercedes- and Ferrari-powered cars are reducing electric deployment in this section, the RB22 appears to continue releasing energy. However, Verstappen’s grip problems then resurface in the final corner. He is forced to lift significantly more than his rivals, resulting in a slow exit.
By the time he crosses the start-finish line, he is travelling around 15 km/h slower than the Mercedes, which appears to save more electrical energy for the final section of the lap.
Red Bull has often produced impressive overnight improvements during Formula 1 weekends, and work will undoubtedly continue on improving the RB22’s performance through the fast corners. However, the Barcelona data suggests that the engineers in Milton Keynes may also need to revisit how the car uses electrical energy throughout the lap, as that strategy appears to have played a major role in Friday’s performance deficit.
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