Red Bull Admits RB22 Launch Struggles to Persist Until 2027

Red Bull has admitted that its ongoing struggles with race starts are unlikely to be fully resolved before the end of the 2026 season. Team chief Laurent Mekies confirmed that fixing the RB22's launch performance requires substantial hardware changes that will only be realized in the 2027 campaign.

Why it matters:

As the RB22 has evolved into a genuine front-runner, its inability to get away cleanly has become a critical liability. In a tight competitive landscape featuring Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes, losing track position at the start often determines the race outcome, making this technical deficit increasingly painful for Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.

The Details:

• Clutch Fragility: Isack Hadjar has been blunt regarding the RB22's clutch system, describing it as too fragile and unable to cope with temperature variations, which leads to inconsistent power delivery during launches.
• Systemic Complexity: Mekies noted that the issue is not limited to a single component. The deficit involves a complex interplay between the engine, gearbox, and clutch, meaning it cannot be fixed via simple setup adjustments.
• Communication Failures: Adding to the frustration, Red Bull is grappling with unexplained radio dropouts. These failures disrupted pit instructions during the US Grand Prix, marking the second consecutive race where communication issues hindered the drivers.
• Incremental Progress: While the team has reduced the gap since the start of the year, they remain far from the benchmark set by their rivals.

What's next:

Red Bull will continue to seek marginal gains through the remainder of the 2026 season, but these will be purely damage-control measures. The team is now shifting its long-term focus toward a total hardware overhaul for 2027 to ensure they can finally compete at the start line.