Verstappen's concern is growing, Horner thinks it's not so bad

"In itself it is positive that he is second, but when you are on 3.5 tenths I am a bit worried about the upcoming races," Jos Verstappen revealed prior to the DutchGP. Jos' worries will not have eased during the race, after seeing his son finish more than 20 seconds behind winner Lando Norris.

Max Verstappen spoke words to the same effect after the race. ''We just weren't fast enough, but that wasn't something I hadn't anticipated," the Dutchman said after the race. "The last few races were not really fantastic. So in a way that was already a bit alarming. But we know we don't have to panic. We know we are just trying to improve the situation, and we are working on that. F1 is very complicated."

This is not the first time Verstappen has voiced his concerns about the lack of growth at Red Bull Racing. The team still started the 2024 Formula 1 season strongly, but the competition, led by McLaren, was closing in at lightning speed. Whereas Verstappen was still winning races with a 20-second lead at the start of 2024, Verstappen now finished twenty seconds behind Lando Norris at his homerace in Zandvoort.

Is Christian Horner worried too?

Where Verstappen is worried, Christian Horner does not seem to be. After the Zandvoort Grand Prix, the Brit insists that the tide can be turned: "It just shows that things have moved very quickly. We were winning races by 20, 25 seconds and Stefano (Domenicali) was asking us to slow down in the first five races. And then it can change very quickly and that means it can change back the other way as well."

It's a repetitive story, as updates throughout the season just don't seem to catch on. Whereas every update McLaren brings provides a big step forward, Red Bull seems to stand still. Helmut Marko expressed his concerns about this, even talking about 'downdates' and 'modifications' rather than updates before the Dutch Grand Prix.

Horner also wants to know nothing about the disappointing performances from Sergio Perez. The Mexican was four tenths slower than Max Verstappen in qualifying on Saturday and allowed himself to be beaten by two Ferrari's in the race. Still, Horner speaks of a "solid job", on a weekend where his team is losing ground on McLaren again and Max Verstappen is also losing ground on Lando Norris.

After such a disappointing weekend, it is also remarkable that Horner chooses to make a joke about Toto Wolff. Of course, Wolff had spoken out about the talks with Max Verstappen and Horner was asked about this matter. Of course then he has to answer, but after a P2 and P6 it is perhaps not the time to joke about the performance of 'Toto Wolff's cars'.

A crucial test awaits Red Bull Racing in Monza. A weekend where Red Bull's weaknesses should surface less and McLaren should be less dominant. So the chance to strike another blow in the championship. If Red Bull gets another knock there, things could still get very tricky in both championships.

This article has been written in collaboration with Matt Gretton