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Red Bull, and Max Verstappen, in particular, swept all aside by winning a record 21 of 22 grands prix last year, with the Dutchman setting a new mark of his own by taking the chequered flag on 19 occasions.
Concern has been expressed by Red Bull’s rivals that this year’s car will be equally as dominant, notably due to the fact the team halted development on the RB19 to focus work on its successor last summer.
“All areas have been revisited in the car, we can’t afford to have any complacency,” insisted Horner.
“The car is very much an evolution of a theme. We’re not reinventing the wheel, so that has been very much the route of the engineering over the last 12 months.”
Horner is anticipating convergence in terms of design this year as other teams look to close the gap, and given the aerodynamic efficiency of the RB19 was far superior.
He added: “I’m expecting the cars to look more familiar to a (RB)19 because it’s inevitable that they will do.”
Acknowledging the fact Red Bull “got it right in the first couple of years” following the introduction of the ground-effect aerodynamic regulations at the start of 2022, Horner said: “I’m sure over the next two years we’re going to see much closer racing.
“We will not repeat the year (2023). It will go down as a unicorn year for us, that’s for sure.”
That, though, places the ball firmly in the court of Red Bull’s main rivals – Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, and Aston Martin.
Mercedes has only won one race over the past two years, whilst Ferrari was the only team last year to deny Red Bull a perfect season of grand prix victories when Carlos Sainz triumphed in Singapore.
As for McLaren, it could prove a threat following a spectacular season from the Austrian GP onwards, yet still fell short of dislodging Red Bull from the top step of the podium.
Aston Martin, meanwhile, was Red Bull’s closest challenger over the first eight races before dramatically tailing off, and it remains to be season whether it can again have a major impact.
As to who he truly fears this season, Horner said: “Mercedes has great strength in depth.
“Obviously, they’ve had a difficult period, but they’ve great drivers, and they will get it together, one would assume, at some point; McLaren had a great back end of the year, and Ferrari show flashes of real potential.
“So it’s difficult to identify which of those is likely to be the biggest challenger, but you could take your pick almost.”
Reminded of Aston Martin, and the Alonso factor, Horner replied: “They made a huge step at the beginning of the year, but they really tailed off in the second half. I’m sure they’re looking to understand why that happened.
“But they’ve got big facilities, big resources, and they’ve recruited a lot of talent into that team, and Fernando was brilliant (last year). He drove fantastically well. For a 42-year-old guy, I thought he was outstanding.”
