Horner admits Red Bull shaped its car around Verstappen's demands

A car tailored for one driver

Red Bull's former boss no longer hides it. Speaking on the High Performance Podcast, Horner said the trend dates back to 2018. Verstappen wants a very sharp front end and can live with a lively rear, whereas most drivers prefer the opposite. Red Bull's tools, working methods and development direction were steered towards that particular taste.

The outcome is well known: a formidable car in the hands of its leader, and a much trickier one for whoever sat in the other seat. Horner named Alex Albon among those who struggled to tame it, and admitted that both Pierre Gasly and Albon were promoted to the senior team too early.

The message from Max's camp

The most striking part concerns Sergio Pérez. According to Horner, Verstappen's management approached him around the Azerbaijan Grand Prix with a blunt message: the team had developed the car around the Mexican and needed to get back to what Max needed. Horner said the message was very clear.

Horner placed the conversation in 2022, but Nextgen-Auto points out that the timeline fits 2023 better. That year, Verstappen and Pérez shared the first four wins, and on the evening of the Baku race the Mexican drew level with his team-mate in the standings. What followed is history: once the car was refocused on Verstappen's preferences, the other driver never really matched him again.

Pérez put in his place, Horner owns it

On the same podcast, Pérez claimed Horner had suggested the second car was only entered because the team had to. The former team principal denies using those words, but admits he set Pérez straight after talking to Verstappen's entourage. Pérez, then out of contract and in talks with Sauber, was told the team was built to win the title with Max. He could beat his team-mate on track if he was able to; otherwise, his job was to support him against Mercedes.

Horner frames it as engineering logic rather than unfairness: technical teams naturally follow the fastest driver, and Verstappen remains, in his eyes, the team's prime asset. He also conceded that the team's wind tunnel lacked reliability and that some simulations were flawed, which did the second driver no favours.

Hadjar inherits the difficult seat

This is not just history. Horner believes a gap remains between what Verstappen extracts from the car and what Isack Hadjar achieves, even though he praised the Frenchman's work this season. His comments land just as Red Bull, now led by Laurent Mekies, has returned to winning ways after a very difficult start to the year.

These revelations tell us little that was not already suspected, but they put official words on a reality long denied in public. The question now is whether the post-Horner Red Bull can finally offer its second driver more than a supporting role.