SUMMARY
- Max Verstappen looks all set to extend his dominance into the 2024 F1 season.
- David Coulthard offers F1 a chance to level the playing field with a potentially game-changing advice.
Red Bull’s dominance has marked a different status for the team and set the bar high with the major success that they have achieved. However, with the spotlight on the team and many teams wishing to climb up the same ladder, David Coulthard masterminded the genius idea to pull Red Bull off the throne.
So far, the Austrian team has broken the record of having the most consecutive race wins and managed to produce one of the most successful seasons in F1 history. This has left the other teams wishing to replace Red Bull and relish in the same glory.
But as F1 inches closer to the 2026 season and the many regulations that could damper the success of the Milton Keynes-based team and its plans to carry on the empire they have built off of their incredible third championship victory. While they have kept their hopes of not falling off the charts, Coutlhard has found ways to challenge the team.
David Coulthard wishes for an insane rule change to stop Verstappen
While David Coulthard has been a Red Bull driver once in his career, he seems to have had enough of the team’s constant dominance. The topic of Max Verstappen‘s brilliance has become a topic that pulls in all the legends of the sport into a single sentence. Unfortunately, Red Bull’s ex-driver has come up with what the FIA can introduce to limit the Austrian team and bring more competition to the sport.
According to the ex-race winner, the sport can propose two tire manufacturers that the teams can alternate between. His theory involved plans of seeing Pirelli and Bridgestone being the tire providers and while some tracks would have Pirelli working better, some would require a switch to Bridgestone.
This could make the sport a bit more enthralling and put teams in an ultimate competition not just on the tracks but also to have the fastest pitstops. He said,
📰: David Coulthard suggests reintroducing multiple tire suppliers in Formula 1 to increase competition and potentially curb Red Bull’s dominance. He highlights that different tire manufacturers could provide the right tire for specific circuits, leading to competitive shifts.… pic.twitter.com/jrJqRUm7l7
— F1 Naija (@f1_naija) January 23, 2024
“Sometimes it would be Pirelli that had the right tire for the circuit and sometimes, let’s say for argument’s sake, it was Bridgestone that would have the right tire. You would naturally have this competitive shift circuit to circuit based on the only thing that touches the ground, which is the tires.”
This continuous shift between tracks understanding the tire degradation better and working according to those stats can have the team hyper-focus on their speed and wanting to get past the other in the most efficient way possible. Although this can cause a lot of pitstop mishaps and complete chaos, the driver is convinced this can stop Red Bull.
Red Bull welcomes their first female mechanic
While some teams and drivers have taken time to plot and scheme Red Bull’s downfall, the energy-drink team is only moving forward. Having taken one more step towards the need for inclusivity and having a diverse environment even in the factory, Red Bull introduced their first female mechanic into the team.
Although the sport has yet to see a full-time female driver, a door for women to get into the sport has opened. Emmie Jones joined the team after serving time at the Mercedes F1 team as a technician. The new Red Bull mechanic said,
Meet Emmie Jones, Red Bull’s first ever female Mechanic! 🌟
“I’m very proud to be here, and hopefully it can inspire a lot more to follow in my footsteps.”
[redbullracing/IG] pic.twitter.com/9g8TRCnPQD
— RBR Daily (@RBR_Daily) January 18, 2024
“To be the first female Oracle Red Bull Racing mechanic is a pretty big achievement for me and I’m very proud to be it. Hopefully, it can inspire a lot more to follow in my footsteps.”
As they move into the 2024 season with a great success rate and yet another Mercedes member under their roof, the team seems a lot more confident about their new season.