Horner looks ahead: 'Next phase of championship battle essential'

Ever since the start of the 2021 racing season, the battle between title contenders Red Bull Racing and Mercedes has been exciting. While a Red Bull driver now leads in the drivers' championship, it is defending champion Mercedes that has maintained the lead in the constructors' battle. According to Red Bull team boss Christian Horner the difference between the two teams has now shrunk to just a tenth of a second.

"We’re qualifying within a tenth of each other", is how Horner illustrates the current balance of power between the two top teams, in conversation with Motorsport.com. At Zandvoort, Max Verstappen managed to capture pole position from Lewis Hamilton by being 0.0038 seconds too fast for him.

"We seem to have a tenth, maybe two-tenth advantage in the race I would say at this venue", the team boss continued. "There are going to be circuits that suit Mercedes and there'll be circuits that suit us."

In the midst of a season that is so hugely exciting, Horner also knows that the winner will ultimately be the one who has managed to take advantage of every possible opportunity. "The next phase of the championship will be interesting. So we need to make sure we grab every opportunity", he concludes.