Friction and Fast Tracks: Red Bull's Pursuit of Dominance

Apr.15 - "Peace" has broken out at Red Bull, according to former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone.

It's definitely true that, amid the high-profile off-track power struggle and the Christian Horner scandal, Melbourne and Japan were significantly quieter weekends for the dominant Red Bull team.

But there's still plenty of action bubbling away in the background. For instance, an appeal process lodged by Horner's female accuser will take place this week.

"What is very impressive is that the drivers, mechanics, engineers, all managed to maintain this level of performance," former team driver Robert Doornbos told Ziggo Sport.

"There's still a lot of friction there. The process continues and there are different camps within the team now," the Dutchman added. "At a certain point that becomes disastrous.

"When trust is lost, people start to determine their own futures," he said.

Indeed, it is obvious that contact was made between the Max Verstappen camp and Mercedes - amid a parallel concern that Red Bull's own engine program may not be up to the task of the sweeping new rules for 2026.

"As it looks now, even though they have Ford, they don't have enough power," said Doornbos. "As a smart driver, you want to catch the next wave that will be dominant.

"That will be Mercedes, in my view," he added. "As a manufacturer, they have an advantage over a privateer. As a driver, you want to be with a factory team."

As for the Horner scandal and Austria-versus-Thai power struggle, however, Ecclestone - who is known to be close to the Red Bull Racing team principal, declared: "It's peace in our time.

"And Christian informs me everything's fantastic with Geri. Max seems likely to stay, and it's like all wars in so much as people get over things and move on. After not too long everyone forgets," he told the Daily Mail.

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