Despite winning six of the 11 F1 races contested so far this season, the Honda-powered Red Bull team remains 12 points behind bitter rivals Mercedes in the 2021 Constructors’ Championship.
This has followed some disastrous and controversial races of late, which have seen relationships between the top two constructors worsen and left Red Bull Honda largely disappointed with their results.
But will Honda continue to assemble Red Bull’s engines in 2022, and can they still claim the title this time around?
The Season so Far for Red Bull Honda
The talented Max Verstappen has claimed five of Red Bull Honda’s six victories to date this season, but their recent troubles began at the British Grand Prix on 18th July.
Back then, Verstappen crashed out during the first lap at Silverstone, after a collision with rival and seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton. This ignited a feud that had simmered between the two drivers for some time, with Verstappen claiming that it was Hamilton’s reckless driving that was the cause of the clash (although this has been disputed by Mercedes).
Things scarcely got any better two weeks later in Hungary, when Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate ValterriBottas saw his vehicle lock up as he crashed into the back of Lando Norris. This collision took out Verstappen’s fellow Red Bull driver Sergio Perez, while causing damage to his car and leaving him outside of the points and in 10th place come the end of the race.
Of course, neither result can be placed at the door of Honda, whose engines have actually afforded Red Bull a critical edge over Mercedes this season.
However, it’s immensely frustrating that the recent collisions have undermined Honda’s excellent work to date, while creating a pathway for Hamilton to claim a record-breaking eighth world title and deliver yet another constructors’ championship for Mercedes.
Why Honda Remain Hopeful of Claiming the 2021 Title
If you own a Honda, you’ll know that these vehicles are both reliable and high-performance in equal measure, leaving you with little to worry about other than organising third party cover and competitive gap insurance.
Things are a little different in the world of competitive driving, however, and Honda’s engine are struggling to compensate completely for the brilliance of Hamilton’s driving and the vagaries of luck in elite-level sport.
Fortunately for Red Bull Honda, the summer break in the F1 season has come at just the right time, with four weeks separating the disastrous Hungarian GP and the upcoming race at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
This will allow the team time to regroup and refresh, while addressing any minor technical issues that may have been worrying Verstappen and Perez. This may prove crucial, especially with Verstappen alone having won four of the five races prior to the initial collision at Silverstone in July.
There’s also good news in that Honda will continue to assemble engines for Red Bull in 2022 even after the team’s departure from F1, creating some continuity and peace of mind across the board.
