Red Bull senior engineer confirms upgrades to battle for the constructors’ world championship second place

Red Bull technical director Pierre Wache has confirmed further improvements, as the team aims to finish second in the constructors’ title. With six races and three sprint rounds remaining in the season, the Milton Keynes team is in a close battle with Mercedes and Ferrari.

After a mid-season slump, Red Bull regained its momentum at Monza, with Max Verstappen’s pole-to-flag win coming after a major redesign of the floor. Revised vertical rails and outer edge profiles have improved the RB21’s grip and stability. Further improvements in Baku and Singapore saw Verstappen finish first and second respectively.

talking to Racing News 365The snitch said:

“We’ll have other things to come. Not the next Grand Prix, maybe a little later. Obviously the Constructors’ championship is not over yet for us. It’s very important. With the philosophy of this team, and with every race we take part in in this championship, we never give anything away.”

The exact nature of the upcoming package remains unannounced, but Red Bull’s focus has been on improving downforce consistency and front-end stability, areas that hurt them earlier in the year.

The Monza ground gave the team a clear aerodynamic base, and the new front wing introduced in Singapore helped Max Verstappen finish ahead of both McLaren teams at Marina Bay.

The track has long exposed Red Bull’s weaknesses. Team director Laurent Mekes acknowledged this result “It means a lot” Due to the team’s historical struggles on high downforce tracks. For a car that has traditionally dominated low-drag designs, the makeover in Singapore ensured that updates were available across all configurations.

Wache explained that the timing of the updates reflects how the team works internally.

“We compromised a little bit at the beginning of the year,” he said. “But with the way we work, it’s like that every time. We’re a little late in development, a little late in finalizing the next car. It’s the way our system works, and we’re taking advantage of it this year. Maybe we’re a little bit different from others in the way we work, but we have a very good capability internally in terms of manufacturing. That’s what we’re good at.”

Red Bull is fourth in the standings with 290 points, fast approaching Ferrari (298) and Mercedes (325). The battle for second place remains wide open ahead of next Sunday’s US Grand Prix in Austin.

How Red Bull’s late-season push fits into its plans for 2026

Red Bull’s decision to continue development of its current car late in the season has raised questions about its project for the 2026 season. Next year’s organizational shift will introduce lighter body designs, new aerodynamic profiles, and the debut of RB Engines as the team’s in-house engine supplier.

Unlike McLaren, which halted development of the MCL39 to focus on next year’s concept, the Milton Keynes company has confirmed that its updates will not impact the business in the long term. Washi addressed this concern and explained, Via the aforementioned source:

“I don’t think so. Just to be clear, what we have now and what we have a little later were developed a long time ago. It’s not like it was yesterday.”

With the team’s internal resources split between the aerodynamics group at Milton Keynes and the power unit operations at Milton Keynes and Sakura, the team’s approach allows both streams to progress in parallel.

Although Max Verstappen is trailing Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, he is still in the title race, so every update counts.