RED BULL
There has been a change in attitude at Red Bull, but 2016 could well be a case of deja vu. The team is exuding the carefree, new kids on the block vibe it entered F1 with but which was lost during the years of success on track and tension between drivers and team members off it. Perhaps a lack of sympathy for last year’s power unit problems and subsequent quit threats was the catalyst.
While it’s a welcome approach, the same problems which blighted the team last year are likely to remain in place this season. The Renault power unit - badged as a Tag Heuer - will not be as competitive as the Mercedes or Ferrari at the start of the year, and Red Bull’s contract runs out at the end of 2016 which means it could well be facing further uncertainty over its future in F1.
However, the RB12 looks to be a strong chassis which Red Bull can maximise immediately having been caught out by new nose regulations at the start of last year, and there have been a number of cautiously optimistic voices regarding a Renault upgrade due early in the summer. If the power unit is even slightly competitive, Red Bull will be a threat for victories on street circuits at the very least.
Silbermann's view
When Red Bull Racing first came on the scene, it vowed to apply a different approach to its PR. Its first drivers, David Coulthard and Christian Klien were told they could speak their mind and didn’t have to spout platitudes. As the team got more professional, those admirable sentiments went out the window, but it seems that Dietrich Mateschitz still clings to the speak-your-mind school of PR: he and his trusty lieutenant, Helmut Marko unleashed a torrent of abuse against Renault in 2015 and then couldn’t understand why the French company got a trifle miffed over this. While this year’s engines will be using hot air to raise the noise level, team boss Christian Horner will be hoping he can muzzle his mouthy master so they can start turning things round. But that Renault power unit is going to take half a year to improve.
