Red Bull faces second seat dilemma in Verstappen’s dominance era

According to Formula 1 data, Red Bull Racing continues to face challenges with its second seat — an issue that has persisted since Daniel Ricciardo’s departure from the team.

Max Verstappen has proven himself as a dominant driver who’s difficult to match. Since 2016, the performance gap with his teammates has steadily widened — from being 0.049 seconds slower than Ricciardo to differences reaching over a second with Liam Lawson in the recent Australian GP.

The Red Bull car possesses unique characteristics — responsive front end but unstable rear. Christian Horner, Red Bull team principal, explains:

“Max is quite specific in what he wants from a car to make it fast, and that is generally a very positive front end, very sharp turn-in.”

The team develops the car based on available data and feedback, which largely comes from Verstappen as their fastest driver. This situation creates a continuous cycle — the car becomes increasingly suited to Verstappen’s style, yet more challenging for his teammates.

This condition raises questions about the team’s future if Verstappen decides to leave someday. Red Bull must consider changing their car development philosophy to avoid dependence on a single driver.