**Red Bull Rebounds: Baku Floor Upgrade Sparks Renewed F1 Competitiveness**

Have Red Bull resolved their F1 car issues with the new floor upgrade in Baku?

According to Lewis Larkam’s report from Baku, Red Bull appears to be more competitive after implementing the floor upgrade.

At the F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, Red Bull debuted an updated floor design and experienced a successful initial day on the track, boosting the team's confidence that they are "moving in the right direction."

The revised floor design represents Red Bull's initial effort to tackle the problems that have troubled their 2024 car and intensified their recent challenges in staying competitive.

In a media briefing before the first practice session in Baku, Red Bull's chief engineer Paul Monaghan referred to the modification in geometry as "remarkably subtle." He also suggested that another update might be introduced in Singapore the following weekend.

"The learning process is continuous, and the immediate responses are usually seen in the subsequent races, which shows the dedication of everyone involved," Monaghan stated.

"It's a significant amount of effort, and we'll keep putting in that effort. With Singapore just a week ahead, we might see further developments."

The magnitude of the update essentially dictates the delay involved, so if we've accomplished it for this race, it isn't the most significant alteration we'll ever attempt in terms of geometric modification.

"It's a nuanced situation. Could the outcome be positive? Absolutely. I believe the true test will come on Sunday afternoon."

Following a challenging performance at the Italian Grand Prix in Monza, where Max Verstappen secured sixth place and Sergio Perez finished in eighth, Red Bull appeared significantly more competitive in Baku.

Max Verstappen, who is currently leading the championship by 62 points ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris, dominated the first practice session. Although he was less satisfied during the second practice session due to issues with front grip and a close encounter with the barriers at Turn 5, he still described the day as “positive” for the Red Bull team.

Perez performed well, finishing a mere 0.006 seconds behind Charles Leclerc's leading Ferrari time. He is confident that the adjustments Red Bull implemented were beneficial.

After the second practice session, he expressed optimism, saying, "We are making progress. We are discovering that we can assemble the car effectively. Although there's still a significant journey ahead, the outlook is encouraging."

Red Bull's team boss, Christian Horner, expressed optimism on Friday, stating that his team now has a well-defined path to follow in their efforts to overcome their challenges.

"Monza was certainly a challenging weekend for us, but I believe that every negative experience has a positive side," he mentioned during the FIA press conference held between the two practice sessions.

"I believe the challenges we faced over the weekend highlighted certain persistent issues with the car. This has now provided us with a definitive path forward."

The entire team, including the drivers who spend extensive hours on the simulator and every single department, is highly committed and working as hard as they can.

“Everyone in Milton Keynes is putting in extended hours right now, both the men and women. We are hopeful that we can make a positive change.”

Horner mentioned that they have encountered some inconsistencies with the car's performance which they have been trying to figure out. He believes they now have a solid understanding of the issue, but resolving it will naturally require some time.

"Grasping the problem is one aspect, but tackling it and equipping the car with the necessary components to resolve it is another matter entirely."

Discussing the complications that have plagued Red Bull’s RB20, Horner remarked, “I believe there are multiple factors at play.

"You're mentioning the overall strain placed on the car due to upgrades, but there's also the issue of balance. At the start of the year, I believe our car was more balanced."

"As we've added weight to the car, the results haven't matched what our tools predicted. I believe a few other teams have experienced this issue too."

"As we begin to test the limits of these regulations, we occasionally notice a discrepancy between the results from the track and those from our simulation tools, such as the wind tunnel and CFD. Therefore, there has been a significant effort to comprehend and resolve this issue."

Following the reduction of his lead in the championship at Monza and Red Bull’s narrow eight-point advantage over McLaren in the constructors’ standings, Verstappen called on Red Bull to implement significant modifications to their car to maintain a shot at securing both titles.

"We're not going to remain idle in response to Verstappen's remarks or our showing in Monza; we plan to take action and not just rely on hope," Monaghan stated.

"There are numerous approaches to discuss the issues we observed with the car's performance at Monza, and it involves every component of the vehicle, not just changes to the floor design or the wing configuration."

"It would be unrealistic for us to believe we can simply abandon the situation. We've taken time to recover and have attempted to improve the car with various modifications."

"We're not keen on revisiting Monza; it wasn't our best experience. Our goal is to perform better compared to our competitors."

It is thought that Red Bull is aiming to implement additional adjustments to their car's floor before the United States Grand Prix, scheduled to take place in Austin at the end of October, following an atypical three-week hiatus after the Singapore race.

In contrast to the obligatory two-week summer break in August, when teams are prohibited from working on their vehicles, there are no similar limitations during the forthcoming interval.

Monaghan admitted that it allows them the possibility to achieve more.

"The key point is not to push yourself to do it. The disciplined way to look at it is to ask, 'Is it worth the investment to take it to Austin?'"

"Remember, Austin features a sprint race, so during the first practice session, teams will have to take some risks and quickly decide whether to keep or discard their setups. This means they might end up with limited quantities of certain components. Therefore, the decisions made for Austin will vary depending on the team's strategy and their level of confidence."

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