Horner: "We pitted Max and it triggered the two stops for everybody else"
F1 News
Christian Horner believes Red Bull’s two-stop strategy at the Chinese Grand Prix forced Ferrari’s hand resulting in Charles Leclerc slipping down to fifth place, behind Max Verstappen.
Having been forced to move aside to allow Sebastian Vettel to pass, Leclerc was subsequently caught on the wrong side of Verstappen who was on newer tyres from the first set of pit stops. Vettel was unable to catch the Mercedes pair and went on to finish third, his first podium of the season, whilst Leclerc never recovered and finished in P5.
Speaking to Racer Horner believed the Red Bull strategy triggered a reaction from everyone else.
“We pitted Max and it triggered the two stops for everybody else,” Horner said.
“Our rationale pretty early on was that the most upside we could have was in the upside of a two-stop, like a Safety Car, and others had elected to stay on the one-stop strategy.
“I don’t think we had a faster car than Ferrari, so our best way to beat at least one of their cars was going on to the two-stop.
“That sparked discussion between Sebastian [Vettel] and his pit wall about whether they would pit, and in the end, they covered, which saw Mercedes cover him.
“Leclerc got hung out to dry a little bit.
“For us, P4 was the maximum.”