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Red Bull and Ferrari will both bring upgrades to the Austrian Grand Prix that could prove central to any hopes either team has of closing the gap to McLaren this year.
Max Verstappen commented after his runner-up finish in Canada that Red Bull needs more performance to be able to challenge for wins on a more consistent basis, with an upgrade in the pipeline for the return to Europe. New parts will be on the car this weekend, and Verstappen says the team only needs to make a relatively small step compared to its rivals – although he is wary of other teams also bringing gains.
“Hopefully it gives us a bit more performance,” Verstappen said. “The team has been working hard to get these parts. So, of course, I’m very happy that we have an upgrade here.
“Every little bit forward will help us be more competitive and hopefully close the gap a little bit. But at the same time, we also know that others are also bringing bits throughout the year. So, we just need to keep working hard, keep trying to close that gap down.”
Yuki Tsunoda confirmed the upgrades are only going to be on Verstappen’s car in Austria, as the team scrambled to bring the package to the track as quickly as possible. According to Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko, a further tweak is expected for the following weekend at Silverstone.
Oscar Piastri has also confirmed there will be some new parts on the front end of the McLaren this weekend as the championship-leading team looks to maintain its advantage, having turned around its own form mid-season last year, while Ferrari is another team that is bringing an update to the Red Bull Ring.
Fred Vasseur’s team has been inconsistent throughout 2025 but showed signs of progress from Imola onwards, with strong race pace across the European trio of consecutive races. A new floor is being introduced this weekend, although both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton played down expectations for it.
“I don’t think that it will fundamentally change [overall competitiveness],” Leclerc said. “What we are looking to do is to do small steps in the right direction and obviously try and understand what direction can we push in the future.
“I expect steps forward. Would it be enough to close the gap to McLaren? Probably not because for now they are too far ahead – McLaren and Red Bull. As I said many times, Mercedes is a lot more up and down so it’s a bit more difficult to judge with them. But I think it will be a step in the right direction. How much, I don’t know.”
Hamilton has struggled to adapt to his new car at times since his move to Ferrari from Mercedes, and similarly says overall downforce is not expected to be significantly changed, although any impact on the balance could help his personal comfort with the car’s handling.
“Firstly, I’m happy that we have an upgrade,” Hamilton said. “It’s always exciting to get new pieces to the car so I’m really grateful for everyone working really hard to bring those.
“We really don’t know the actual effect that it’s going to have. It’s not the normal information we’re getting of how much load you added to the car. That’s not necessarily clear. Hopefully we’ll be a step in the right direction. I don’t think we’re expecting it to change a huge amount, but fingers crossed it’s better than we hope.”
