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F1 CEO Stefano Domencali has reminded Red Bull of its responsibility to give its four-time champion racer, Max Verstappen, a "better car." Domenicali noted how the Milton Keynes outfit needs to build an ecosystem around the Dutchman to resurrect its place at the top of F1.
Since the start of 2024, Red Bull had been in trouble, with then-Team Principal Christian Horner getting accused of inappropriate behaviour by a female colleague. That case led to the unearthing of a separate ugly 'power struggle' within the side, gradually leading to the exit of several high-profile talents, consisting of technical mastermind Adrian Newey.
Earlier in July 2025, Red Bull sacked Christian Horner as the team's on-track performance continued to decline. Racing Bull TP Laurent Mekies replaced him as Team Principal of Red Bull. Stefano Domenicali thinks that under this new regime, Max Verstappen can become a championship contender again if gets the appropriate support from Red Bull machinery.
"Within the new team structure, I think Red Bull has to provide him (Verstappen) with a better car. But they will definitely work 100% on that. Laurent will work with an ecosystem built around Verstappen, within which Verstappen can fully focus. He naturally wants to win and be the fastest every lap. Verstappen will help the team get back on top," Domenicali told RN365.
The F1 CEO also called Max Verstappen a "phenomenal driver, the best driver," and noted how the four-time and reigning F1 champion has "matured" as a person.
Max Verstappen credits Laurent Mekies' crucial role in Red Bull's turnaround after Italian GP win
Red Bull stopped being the strong force in mid-2024, and its performance continued to decline, as McLaren took over the constructors' crown. However , under the guidance of Laurent Mekies, the Milton Keynes side has witnessed a sudden turnaround, at least in Max Verstappen's results.
While the struggles for Yuki Tsunoda continues, Verstappen has had an impressive surge in speed post-summer break. He finished on the Podium at the Dutch GP, his home race, and won the next race at Monza.
Verstappen's Italian GP performance was a masterclass, as he won with a 19-second margin over Lando Norris, after starting on pole position. In the post-race press conference, Verstappen addressed the effect Laurent Mekies has had on the engineering department.
"Up until now, we've had a lot of races where we were just shooting left and right a little bit with the setup of the car. Quite extreme changes, which shows that we were not in control. We did not fully understand what to do.
With Laurent having an engineering background, he's asking the right questions to the engineers — common-sense questions. So I think that works really well," Verstappen said via fia.com.
As Verstappen appreciated Laurent Mekies' impact, the Red Bull Team Principal humbly said he has had "zero" contribution in the team's success, and that it is the 1500 people working on the car who need to be thanked.
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