Red Bull’s technical director: “McLaren’s suspension is interesting but very risky”. Pierre Waché, Red Bull's technical director, comments on McLaren's front suspension.

During Formula 1 pre-season testing, all technical directors claim to focus on their own team’s work, but in reality, they closely observe the solutions introduced by their rivals.

Pierre Waché, the mastermind behind the RB21 of Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson, admitted to being surprised by some of the innovations seen on competitors’ cars, particularly the McLaren MCL39 and Ferrari SF-25.

What caught the French engineer’s attention the most was McLaren’s front suspension design, where the rear arm of the upper wishbone is even more inclined, enhancing the anti-dive effect and providing both mechanical and aerodynamic advantages.

“We look at others’ solutions when we have some time. Some things are interesting, others less so,” Pierre Waché told Canal+. “McLaren is very interesting. After all, there are many flexible wings at the front and rear. Their front suspension is very intriguing but also very risky from our point of view. It will be very interesting to see if they can make it work.”

“Ferrari is also interesting. I think they have tried to correct the problems they had in the past. I believe it will be a very close battle between four teams.”

Pierre Waché then focused on the RB21, once again describing it as a car with less potential than its 2024 predecessor but with a broader operating and setup window.

“As for the RB21, we have worked on the setup to understand how the car behaves and reacts. Its characteristics are more or less what we expected, and the drivers are quite happy. That is a positive sign. In terms of speed, we don’t know how we compare to the others.”

“The exterior of the car is similar to last year’s, but not identical. However, the entire car has changed. We have focused primarily on the car’s characteristics, such as aerodynamics and suspension, to give the drivers better sensitivity and eliminate the issues we had last year. It is really different, and we will see if it pays off.”

“The RB20 had great potential, but it was complicated to use and difficult to handle in challenging conditions. Its operating window was very narrow, preventing the drivers from fully exploiting its potential in all conditions. We may have slightly reduced the potential, but with better usability for the drivers.”