Even Max Verstappen is not enough to carry the Red Bull RB21 on his own. At the 2025 British Grand Prix weekend at Silverstone, the Austrian team endured yet another difficult Friday. There’s an increasing sense that the squad is sometimes unsure of how best to manage its car setup and development.
One of the few positive notes came from the debut of Arvid Lindblad, the highly promising underage junior driver from the Red Bull academy. Thanks to a special exemption granted by the FIA, the young Briton was able to take part in Free Practice 1. Lindblad followed the team’s instructions perfectly—he completed his mileage and avoided any errors, gaining valuable Formula 1 experience without taking unnecessary risks.
RB21: a complex and inconsistent machine
The British driver participated in FP1 in place of Yuki Tsunoda, and, as has been the case for many races now, analyzing Red Bull’s Friday performance is increasingly challenging. In the hands of Max Verstappen, the RB21 appears competent, but for the other drivers it becomes almost unmanageable—crushing their confidence and performance levels.
For their home race, Red Bull debuted a new floor on the RB21, aiming to address some of the car’s aerodynamic balance problems. Verstappen’s car seemed competitive in Sector 1, but then lost ground significantly in Sector 2 and Sector 3. Once again, Red Bull mechanics were seen making setup changes throughout practice, attempting to adjust the car’s handling ahead of final modifications scheduled for FP3.
Max Verstappen frustrated—but not giving up
After speaking about his future and ongoing speculation linking him to Mercedes on Thursday, Max Verstappen appeared visibly frustrated after the two Friday sessions. He described the first day of running as disappointing, explaining that the car lacked consistent balance and behaved unpredictably in every corner.
The reigning Formula 1 World Champion refused to blame the windy conditions at Silverstone, noting that all twenty drivers had to contend with the same turbulence. What concerned him most was the unpredictability of the RB21 from one circuit to the next. This forces both drivers and engineers to tackle different issues every weekend, often with little time to implement solutions.
Max Verstappen explained that there was plenty for the team to analyze overnight, but ultimately, the car simply lacked pace. More concerning than any single session was the growing feeling that Red Bull Racing has been unable to truly improve its car over the past year. Still, Verstappen is not one to give up easily—he remains determined to turn things around as the weekend progresses.
Red Bull in need of a performance breakthrough
Silverstone has historically been a strong circuit for Max Verstappen. The layout of the British Grand Prix track, with its high-speed corners and long straights, should theoretically suit the characteristics of the RB21. But the stopwatch tells a different story this year.
While Verstappen may still have a shot at qualifying on the front rows of the grid, the resurgence of the Ferrari SF-25 and the strong pace shown by McLaren have made the fight at the front much more competitive than expected.
One of Verstappen’s key complaints was understeer. Although the RB21 is capable of generating significant downforce through its floor, the car’s aerodynamic balance seems skewed toward the rear axle. This shifts the center of pressure backward, creating a lack of front-end grip—especially in fast corners where the front tires are under the most load.
As seen in the previous round in Austria, Red Bull’s go-to solution remains increasing the front wing angle in an attempt to balance the car more effectively. Yet this setup change hasn’t been enough to make up for the RB21’s weaknesses, especially in Silverstone’s fast and technical middle sector—an area where Ferrari unexpectedly dominated.
Race pace remains Red Bull’s best weapon
There is, however, one area where Red Bull showed encouraging signs: long-run pace. During Free Practice 2, Max Verstappen posted the strongest race simulation times, displaying the least tire degradation across all compounds. This proves that while the RB21 may be lacking on a single lap, it can still be highly competitive over race distance.
In modern Formula 1, though, having strong race pace is not enough unless you can start from the front rows and manage tire wear in clean air. Unless Red Bull makes a significant step forward in setup and balance ahead of qualifying, another anonymous weekend may be on the cards.
But for Max Verstappen, every day is a new opportunity—and Silverstone is far from over.
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