With one eye already looking forward to 2027, Red Bull Racing might be giving up on its F1 championship hopes in 2026.
The 2026 F1 season opened with Red Bull in unfamiliar territory of being the fourth-fastest car on the grid. In recent years, we've grown accustomed to this team dominating the grid, or at least fighting for the win in every race.
But eleven races in, and Red Bull still trails Mercedes, Ferrari, and McLaren in both the Drivers' and Teams' standings. Yep, even Max Verstappen's otherworldly superpowers can't tow the struggling RB22 this time.
Verstappen almost completed the improbable comeback against McLaren's Lando Norris in 2025, but things are looking different this year. Red Bull might already be shifting more resources towards developing their 2027 challenger.
Still, there are positive aspects to salvage for Red Bull's current campaign, along with Verstappen's still-excellent performances, of course.
The Highs
1. Red Bull Ford Powertrains' impressive debut
After Honda announced its departure from F1 in 2021 (although they returned this season to partner with Aston Martin), Red Bull and Ford Motor Company collaborated to supply the team's own power units.
And what a debut it has been for Red Bull Ford.
Midway through the season, the FIA's Additional Development and Upgrade Opportunities (ADUO) index indicates that Red Bull Ford currently has the benchmark internal combustion engine (ICE).
This might cost them development under the ADUO rules, but having the most powerful ICE in their debut season is pretty remarkable.
2. The second Red Bull seat is looking good
The past couple of years have been challenging for Verstappen's teammates. In 2024, Sergio Perez scored 152 points compared to the Dutchman's 437. In 2025, Yuki Tsunoda can only muster 33 points, a meager total when slotted beside Verstappen's 421 points.
And those were on much better Red Bull cars.
But so far this season, Isack Hadjar has kept in touch with Verstappen. The French driver currently has 68 points, with Verstappen accumulating 109.
If Red Bull develops their car in the right direction in 2027, there might be real competition between their two drivers.
The Lows
1. Reliability issues contributing to Verstappen's contract extension saga
Among the four frontrunners in the Teams' standings, Red Bull ranks second in most DNFs with five. Verstappen had three of those, all seemingly connected to a car issue, and not particularly driver error.
Verstappen has been very vague in saying anything about his future, with his contract holding clauses for him to exit early. But imagine if Red Bull has a reliably fast car right now. The two camps might have signed on the dotted line even before the summer break.
2. The failed Macarena experiment
Red Bull might not have copied Ferrari's "Macarena wing", but maybe they should've paid more attention to detail. They debuted their own version of the Macarena wing at the Miami GP, where Hadjar DNF'd and Verstappen finished fifth.
But it didn't work. Three races in, before the Belgian GP, Red Bull scrapped the Macarena wing and reverted to their previous conventional rear wing. Verstappen called the wing "super dangerous" after a crash in Austria and a costly spin at Silverstone.
What to watch in the second half
Red Bull is 202 points behind Mercedes and 130 points behind Ferrari in the teams' standings. Chasing the top rung of the ladder might be improbable now, but they're still in the running for third.
They only trail the current third-place McLaren by 43 points, which isn't too difficult to overcome. But the thing is, McLaren will reportedly get more aggressive in developing their current car, as opposed to Red Bull's more forward-looking approach in 2027.
Red Bull needs some of that Verstappen magic to chase down McLaren, and they need it this weekend at Circuit Zandvoort.
