Could the Barcelona round be a turning point for the season? Much attention is focused on the Spanish Grand Prix, especially because this is the weekend when the technical directive on front wings, which will reduce the flex allowed by the regulations, comes into force.
It’s a Grand Prix many teams have had their eye on, hoping that those who have dominated so far might be penalized more than others, potentially closing the gap. In reality, the teams themselves have admitted that the impact will be minimal – about a tenth per lap – but work on balance will still be necessary.
Teams have had time to prepare, since the directive was announced last January, which allowed them to study and develop countermeasures months in advance – unlike what happened with the rear wing directive, which came into effect at the race immediately after it was announced.
While McLaren is thought to be one of the teams that may have relied most heavily on front wing flexibility, Red Bull, on the contrary, has been more conservative — almost paradoxical for a team historically very active in this area, often pushing the limits of regulations. However, Max Verstappen was very direct in his analysis, suggesting that realistically, the new technical directive won’t have a major impact.
“I don’t expect big gains or losses of time between teams. I don’t think Barcelona is suddenly the point where you say: ‘this is where you win or lose’. I don’t think those wings ever really gave us a big performance advantage.”
“From our side, I can say for sure that it won’t change much. I don’t know if we did something wrong or just didn’t manage to get the most out of it. But also for the other teams, I’m sure it’s all manageable. If you have a good car, you have a good car: the wing flexes less, you work around it,” Max Verstappen explained on the eve of the Spanish round.
Red Bull’s hope isn’t that this directive will overturn the current pecking order – no one expects a radical change in the standings – but that even a tenth gained could reignite the fight and allow the RB21 to more consistently challenge McLaren, assuming the impact is truly as expected.
However, that’s not the only focus. Barcelona is one of those tracks that should highlight some of Red Bull’s strengths, starting with competitiveness in fast sections, where the RB21 has often been a benchmark for the entire grid. In terms of stability at very high speeds, the Milton Keynes car has always proven solid, which fuels optimism for the Spanish weekend.
“I think the more high-speed corners there are, the more competitive we’ll be, actually, because I believe in those situations you don’t really need to ride the kerbs. And our car, in ultra-high-speed corners, performs quite well, in my opinion. We just need to try and bring some of that performance into the medium and especially low-speed corners,” said Max, underlining how Red Bull continues to struggle in slower sections.
“I mean, we’ve won two races on pretty fast tracks, so I think that shows that’s where we’re strong. And all the other circuits, you know, where we’ve been a bit off, they’re all more low- or medium-speed.”
It will also be an important weekend for Red Bull to verify whether the new updates have truly helped contain the understeer that has often limited the RB21 on twistier tracks. Barcelona may not be a decisive round, but Verstappen is clear: for now, the focus is on getting the most out of the technical package every single weekend, more than thinking about the title.
“Yes, but it’s not like I don’t believe in it [the title]. I just arrive at the track and give my best every single weekend. I don’t need to blindly believe or not.”
“I know that every time I get on track, I do the best I can. And if the car is a fifth-place car, I’ll bring it to fifth. If it’s capable of winning, I’ll win. Honestly, I approach things very simply, which doesn’t even drain too much energy from me.”
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