Christian Horner admits that Red Bull went through a similar period to what their adversaries Mercedes are facing.
The Red Bull team principal refers to Red Bull’s start to the hybrid era in 2014, which saw the Austrian squad lose its dominance over the rest of the field.
Mercedes shocked the grid with its speed and reliability, establishing an advantage that would take years for rivals to eventually overturn.
Red Bull was still competitive in 2014 – taking three race victories with Daniel Ricciardo – but the team would fail to contest in a championship battle for many years.
Speaking to Sky Sports (as quoted by racingnews365), Christian Horner explained the similarities between Red Bull and Mercedes in this aspect:
“We went through that pain. In 2013, we finished that very dominant streak, and in 2014 – with the change [in regulations]we were nowhere.
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“We never lost belief, people’s heads dropped, but you have to keep focused on a target…
“Everybody’s just kept focused on that, on that challenge, on the goal of getting back to a winning position.”
Horner’s comments are largely accurate, but they will serve as little consolation to Mercedes after their disappointing 2022 campaign.
Red Bull’s RB18 proved the most well-rounded machine on the grid, building a significant gap to its rivals in the standings by the halfway stage.
Mercedes competed for the win on several occasions in 2022 before finally claiming a convincing victory at the Brazilian GP.
Still, the Silver Arrows will hope to make improvements over the winter break and avoid the barren spell that Red Bull experienced after 2013.
