Horner looks back on Verstappen's successful year: 'That surprised us'

In Baku - where he will receive his World Championship trophy later in the day - Max Verstappen does not want to specify by how many percent the RB20 can be better than its predecessor. "I don't think you can talk about percentages or whatever, but I'm sure there are always things that we can do better. We know that. Of course, the car has been very, very dominant. But we've also seen a few weaknesses in the car, which I think we can do better. That's what we're working on for next year," the Dutchman said.

Horner knows: 'We have to do better!'

Team boss Christian Horner, also sees room for improvement: "You're always learning in this business. I think with stable regulations, we know that the field will converge. We've seen that at different points during the course of the past year. We have to improve. We have to keep evolving. I think all aspects of RB19 are being looked at to evolve into RB20 and hopefully make it even stronger because I'm sure that's what our competitors will be looking to do."

Often in a second season after a rule change, the F1 field moves closer together. In 2023, however, Red Bull remained far above the rest. "The thing that surprised us was that really we were able to remain pretty consistent. But at different stages of the year, it was different cars, different teams that were emerging. Aston started the season very strongly. McLaren finished the season very strongly. Ferrari were there at certain races. Mercedes likewise. So it was moving around quite a lot behind us. But the one thing that we were able to control was our own performance and the consistency that we achieved," Horner said.