The “critical problem” for Red Bull in 2024 has been revealed by a former F1 driver.

As Red Bull looks to extend their period of dominance in 2024, Karun Chandhok has stated that Sergio Perez could pose a “critical problem.”.

As a result of their supreme three-time world champion Max Verstappen, the team has now won two consecutive double championships in Formula 1.

Verstappen has won 28 of their 32 victories in the last 36 races dating back to last season.

With only one podium in the previous five races, Perez has struggled to consistently place on the podium in 2023, as evidenced by his 10th-place finish at the Qatar Grand Prix.

Despite the fact that Lewis Hamilton of Mercedes is currently in third place and is threatening him, he is currently second in the drivers’ championship.
However, given how dominant the RB-19 car has been this season, the team wouldn’t have expected that.

Chandhok has questioned how sustainable it is for Red Bull to solely rely on Verstappen in the future, given that Mercedes, McLaren, and Ferrari have all demonstrated in recent races that they have strong driver-pairings in their cars.

He admitted as much to the Sky Sports F1 podcast, “I think it is [a problem].”.

“The gap is only going to get smaller and smaller; we see it in every regulation cycle.
Teams’ gains have diminishing returns, so the teams at the top will be gaining less and less each year.”.

“Things will get more difficult, and two drivers must score points.
“.

McLaren is getting close.

Verstappen’s victory in Qatar, his 14th race of the year, gave him his third consecutive world championship, but McLaren’s performance was somewhat overshadowed.

Oscar Piastri finished second to Max Verstappen by only 4.833 seconds after winning the sprint race on Saturday.
Piastri and Lando Norris achieved their second consecutive double-podium finish.

Following a collision with his teammate on lap one, Mercedes driver George Russell also put on a stellar performance, showcasing the brand’s incredible speed.

While this was going on, Perez struggled to improve upon his subpar qualifying effort and left the Losail International Circuit with just one world championship point after being given three five-second penalties for breaking track regulations.

I understand that he started in the pit lane, but after the first lap’s collision, George was also there, said Chandhok.

The fact that George was able to persevere and come in fourth place demonstrated that if you have a fast car, you should be able to deliver points and a better outcome.

“At the moment, it’s not critical, but it might be for the upcoming season.
“.