Martin Brundle has admitted that after meeting with Red Bull chief technical officer Adrian Newey before the start of the season, he was quite concerned heading into 2024.
We’re just moments away from the 2024 Formula 1 season getting underway in Bahrain this weekend.
Speaking on the Sky Sports F1 Show, Brundle revealed a conversation he had with the 65-year-old ahead of pre-season.
Brundle shares Newey was concerned about over the winter
Red Bull are the team to beat in Formula 1 right now after their incredible 2023 campaign.
Max Verstappen couldn’t be beaten and even left teammate Sergio Perez behind after a tough middle part of the year.
The likes of Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren would have hoped to have closed the gap to Red Bull over the winter.
However, pre-season testing has suggested that Verstappen and Perez still possess the fastest car on the grid despite the radical changes they’ve made.
Martin Brundle has now admitted that something concerned Newey before pre-season testing.
Given his immense winning record, it’s hard to believe that he gets nervous, especially off the back of winning 21 Grand Prix last year.
Their new car has to suit Verstappen’s driving style to guarantee success for Red Bull going forward.
Sergio Perez has been told to accept that he’s second to the Dutchman within the team although it seems like an unfortunate coincidence that he suffered all the small reliability issues that the car had to deal with.
Newey appears to have nothing to worry about
Speaking about his meeting with the technical genius, Brundle said: “I had dinner with Adrian [Newey] and a couple of other mates a week ago and he was like, ‘Yeah, it’s not that much different underneath’ and he seemed quite concerned that teams may have improved their cars even more and be closer to them.
“Quite clearly, they’ve got with that sort of letterbox really of an air intake that energises the airflow. It’s so complex but it’s the relentless nature but I love it, I love this aspect of Formula 1.”
Brundle and the rest of the Formula 1 world will only know if Newey should be concerned about the changes he’s made to the Red Bull over the next few weekends.
The Bahrain circuit is relatively unique compared to the tracks coming up in the calendar.
While they may have looked quickest during testing, they’ll be hoping they can replicate that dominance over the coming months.
If they do, the rest of the grid may wonder if it’s even worth bothering to prepare for 2025 and instead focus on the new regulations the following year.
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