12/07/2010
NEWS STORY
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Having enjoyed a convincing win yesterday, the mood at Red Bull's Milton Keynes HQ this morning should have been one of deep joy, but it wasn't.
Instead, team members are in shock, bewildered by what they read in newspapers and on websites, and what they hear on TV and the radio.
We say 'team members' because the people at Milton Keynes - just like any other F1 team - are not employees they are members of a team.
Therefore as they witness their team seemingly rip itself apart - with a little help from the media - they don't see yesterday as a win but rather a missed opportunity to add 43 points to their tally as opposed 31. That and the chance to take the lead in both championships.
While there is talk of members of Mark Webber's crew taunting members of Sebastian Vettel's crew after yesterday's race, our sources are not aware of this. Then again, with many still in a state of disbelief over what is happening to their team, it may be another couple of days before some of the more lurid stories start to filter through, even as far as those working on the shopfloor are concerned.
On Thursday, as the media persisted in trying to force certain drivers into a corner, to admit that they loathe their teammate and will do anything to beat them, it appeared that it was 'business as usual' as far as the Fleet Street hacks were concerned, if there isn't a story invent one.
However, over the next seventy-two hours it was clear from various comments from those actually involved that there was indeed something amiss, certainly at Red Bull.
First came the news that Vettel had been given the (new) wing from Webber's car. Then - ignoring whatever might have happened on the first lap of the race - came the comments from both Webber and (team boss) Christian Horner.
"Not bad for a number two," said Webber as he took the chequered flag, prompting Horner to reply, "You can smile now".
However, just a few minutes later, as Horner tried to play down the comments to the TV cameras, Webber was telling the world's press - courtesy of the official post-race conference - that he would never have re-signed for Red Bull had he thought the team would be biased in his teammate's favour.
Horner has said that he will hold a 'clear the air' meeting with Webber, however, as we said in the wake on the incident in Turkey, this is simply putting a band-aid on a festering wound. Fact is, there is a cancer within the team and it must be treated.
Let's not forget that this is Red Bull we're talking about, nee Stewart Grand Prix, nee Jaguar. While other teams have come and gone, Red Bull, in only its sixth season is challenging for the both titles and, for the second successive year, leaving Ferrari for dead. In a season in which Ferrari has celebrated its 800th Grand Prix and even Renault heads towards 300, let's not forget that Red Bull has only contested 88.
However, it is because of its youth, its inexperience, that this situation has come about. While Red Bull might be seen as a serious title contender and one of the more innovative teams on the grid, it has a lack of depth, a lack of experience.
The RBR6 is probably the best car on the grid, as was the RBR5 before it, but look at the flaws that have prevented the Austrian outfit making best use of its obvious superiority, the dubious strategy, poor pits stops and equally bad driver management. Essentially, it is the attention to detail where Red Bull falls short and this is where McLaren will beat them.
Think about it. We've heard talk about the endless hours the Red Bull crew worked over the weekend - as did the crews at various other teams, not least McLaren. However, could those endless hours, the sleep deprived crew, have anything to do with the wing falling off Vettel's car on Saturday morning. The very nose that brought this sorry saga out into the open.
Geoff Willis brought reliability to the team and subsequently Adrian Newey pulled the Milton Keynes outfit into shape, courtesy of Dietrich Mateschitz' money drafting in some of the best people in the business... most of whom were to be found up the road in Brackley.
Much like Lewis Hamilton at McLaren in 2008, this season, Red Bull has discovered that Webber isn't a Rubens Barrichello willing to play second-fiddle to a young German. Webber, probably knowing that his shelf-life as an F1 driver is limited - more than the press releases would have you believe by the way ;-) - is hungrier than he's ever been in his life. Add to that the fact that he is in the best car he's ever driven - as is Vettel - and you have a storm brewing, an accident waiting to happen.
Never mind clearing the air, Horner must get a total grip on this situation or risk of the whole thing imploding and his team being left with nothing. Then again, the situation is not helped by the Peter Mandelson like presence of Helmut Marko, ostensibly a Toro Rosso man but, more importantly, Mateschitz' F1 advisor.
The narrative that the team followed in the wake of the Istanbul incident came from on high - probably on the advice of Marko - we do not believe for a minute that Horner was mouthing his own words. The divisiveness higher up the Red Bull food chain threatens to spill over and filter down, this weekend we have seen that this is no (media driven) storm in a teacup.
If the situation isn't resolved soon and properly - not simply in terms of press releases and photoshoots - Red Bull may have just handed both titles to its Woking rivals.