Team Principal of Red Bull, Laurent Mekies, now believes the team has taken a major step forward after the 2026 F1 Austrian GP, with the Frenchman claiming the team now has the pace to challenge for victories following its latest upgrades.
Red Bull secured its strongest result of the season at the Red Bull Ring, and while the team ultimately fell short of victory, Mekies left Austria encouraged by the performance shown across the race weekend.
Mekies encouraged by Red Bull race pace
The biggest positive for Red Bull was not necessarily the final result but the pace the car displayed throughout the 2026 F1 Austrian GP. After spending much of the season trying to close the gap to the front-runners, the Austrian weekend provided fresh evidence that the team’s development direction is beginning to pay off.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the 2026 Austrian GP, Laurent Mekies highlighted the progress Red Bull has made in recent weeks.
He said: “I think the most satisfying element is the pace. For the first time this season, we have the pace to be very, very close to have enough to win.
Mekies reserved particular praise for the effort made behind the scenes at the team’s Milton Keynes headquarters, saying: “Big credit to everyone back in Milton Keynes. You know, it’s something that happens very often, that you can’t sell more than one second of pace delta in a few races, and the season is still very long.”
The Team Principal acknowledged that the work is far from complete. While Red Bull has made gains, Mekies knows rival teams will continue to develop their own cars as the championship progresses.
“We know we will need more because we know competition will also continue to bring updates.
“But certainly it’s very impressive that we are now within the last tenths of what is needed to be on the top step of the podium,” he added.
Could strategy have changed the outcome?
One of the key talking points after the 2026 F1 Austrian GP centred on whether Verstappen and Red Bull could have challenged for victory with a different strategy.
Asked if an earlier second pit stop could have helped the team undercut George Russell, Mekies admitted it was something Red Bull would analyse carefully; he simply said: “It’s something we will review, of course.”
The Frenchman also suggested that Kimi Antonelli produced one of the standout performances of the race, while Max Verstappen showed strong speed throughout the Grand Prix.
“You know, I think it’s probably fair to say that Kimi was probably the fastest guy out there, and perhaps Max was, in fairness, a tiny bit faster than George and just behind Kimi.”
However, Mekies pointed to qualifying as a major factor in the final result. Despite strong race pace, Red Bull paid the price for not starting further up the grid.
“But, you know, starting positions do matter, and we pay a little bit, having started a little bit further away from the top spot yesterday.”
Austria offers hope for Red Bull’s season
The 2026 F1 Austrian GP could prove to be a significant moment in Red Bull’s campaign. After several difficult weekends earlier in the year, the team finally showed signs that it can consistently compete near the front.
Mekies left Spielberg encouraged by both the performance gains delivered by the upgrades and the speed Red Bull displayed over a race distance. While the team still has work to do before it can regularly fight for victories, Austria provided the clearest indication yet that Red Bull is moving back towards the sharp end of the grid.
Looking ahead, Red Bull will aim to build on its strongest weekend of the season as Formula 1 heads to Great Britain for the British Grand Prix. Max Verstappen converted fifth on the grid into an impressive second-place finish, crossing the line just 1.611 seconds behind race winner George Russell, while teammate Isack Hadjar backed up the team’s pace with sixth after starting eighth.
The double points finish marked Red Bull’s best combined result of the 2026 campaign and gives Mekies plenty of encouragement as the team continues developing its upgraded package.
