Red Bull concedes defeat to McLaren – 'writes off' 2025 title

Red Bull Racing has admitted its 2025 Formula 1 championship hopes have likely slipped away – with Helmut Marko going so far as to concede defeat altogether following the team’s disastrous Austrian Grand Prix.

The outfit’s home race at the Red Bull Ring turned into a nightmare for the Milton Keynes outfit when Max Verstappen was eliminated on the opening lap after contact with Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

The collision sent the reigning world champion into the gravel, ending his race on the spot before it had even properly begun.

Meanwhile, McLaren capitalized fully on the chaos, delivering a dominant 1-2 finish. Lando Norris led home teammate Oscar Piastri, who now holds a commanding 61-point lead over Verstappen in the Drivers’ standings while Red Bull trails its papaya rival by a massive 255 points in the Constructors' championship.

Forced to Write Off the Championship

In the aftermath of Sunday’s race, Marko delivered a sobering assessment of the team’s situation in an interview with Austrian broadcaster ORF.

“We’ve got some updates coming over the next two races, but this was a performance that, I’d almost say... yes, it forces us to write off the championship,” Marko said.

When pressed on whether he was truly conceding the title, Marko didn’t waver.

“With this kind of gap and unless we manage to catch up soon enough to win on merit, I mean, how many points is Max trailing now?" he said.

“Looking at McLaren’s performance; they only had a dip in Canada, when they needed new parts. That’s not something we can rely on happening again. So no, it doesn’t look good.

“Unfortunately, it’s both, the time gap and the 60-point margin, which is nearly equivalent to three race wins. That’s incredibly difficult to recover.”

• Read also: Antonelli remorseful, Verstappen dismissive after opening lap crash

It’s a rare public acknowledgement of strategic defeat from Red Bull, particularly coming from Marko, a figure known more for bullish confidence than resignation.

The Austrian veteran’s comments signal a dramatic change in tone from a team that has dominated the turbo-hybrid era's closing years – save last season – and the dawn of Formula 1’s ground effect era.

Horner: “We don’t even think about championships”

Team principal Christian Horner echoed Marko’s concerns, albeit with a slightly more measured tone.
Rather than confirming Red Bull had given up, Horner pointed to the strength of the opposition and emphasized short-term focus.

“McLaren, you can see how they're racing each other, they've got a cushion to the rest of the field, for us we just focus one race at a time,” Horner said.

“We don't even think about championships, we just focus on the next race at Silverstone and what can we achieve there.

“I still believe that we have strength and depth in this team and unfortunately we haven't seen the performance come that we would like.”

The admission underscores how the momentum has shifted in F1's championship battle. Once plagued by inconsistency and intra-team growing pains, McLaren has emerged since the middle of last season as the clear benchmark – with both Piastri and Norris routinely locking out the front rows and executing flawless race strategies.

Formula 1’s next chapter will unfold at Silverstone next weekend, but for the first time in years, Red Bull is heading to a race not as the hunted — but as the hunter, scrambling to rediscover performance in a season that has slipped from their grasp.

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