Red Bull could never accept 2021 F1 development sacrifice

With F1 teams preparing for a rules revolution next year, a number of outfits – including Mercedes - elected to freeze their current designs early in the campaign to focus more on their new cars. 

But Red Bull has bucked the trend and been aggressive in bringing a series of upgrades to its RB16B in its bid to ensure it does everything to try to win the current F1 title.

Horner has repeatedly said that he thinks the team is not sacrificing its 2022 performance by pushing so hard this season. 

And he is clear that there was no way he could have accepted doing anything different.  

“It is embedded in who we are as a race team that it's not in our culture to give up on any season,” Horner told Autosport. 

“Of course we have the constraints of the budget cap as well, which makes life slightly more complicated.  

“But people have short term memories in this sport, and you've got to go for it.  

“Every race is an opportunity and if it means people have to work a little bit harder, and a few longer hours to enable that, then absolutely everybody is up to that challenge.” 

Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images

Asked if he was surprised that Mercedes had chosen to call time so early on developing its 2021 car, Horner said: “I don't know what their constraints are. 

“Obviously they're a bigger organisation than we are, so cost cap is having a significant impact on their planning and how they've managed during the COVID period. We've managed to keep the body of the team very much together.  

“I can't judge other organisations without having all the facts, so all I can do is focus on what we're doing. And we're very comfortable with the approach that we are taking.  

“Obviously if they are two seconds ahead of us at the first race next year, that will be disappointing. But I feel that we've got the balance about right at the moment.”