Helmut Marko reveals how ‘excellent’ Laurent Mekies has already improved Red Bull since replacing Christian Horner

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Red Bull have a lot of work to do if they are to catch their Formula 1 rivals at the sharp end of the grid in 2026.

The first step of their process was to hire Laurent Mekies as team principal, who has been tasked with bringing change to a team led by the same man for over 20 years.

That’s not to say he’s undoing Christian Horner’s good work, but Red Bull’s gradual slide down the constructors’ championship couldn’t be ignored.

The team should still be in a solid position, but they do have some questions to answer heading into the 2026 F1 regulations.

Helmut Marko, in particular, is tasked with picking the drivers alongside Mekies, which is a tough job, considering how the second seat has fared over the last few seasons. Red Bull have identified their ‘frontrunner’ to replace Yuki Tsunoda, but it might be a gamble.

There’s even a chance that Red Bull could change their minds about Tsunoda before the end of the campaign, if he manages to perform well. He gets on with Mekies, after all.

READ MORE: F1 driver now ‘highly resistant’ to replacing Yuki Tsunoda at Red Bull after hiring new management

Helmut Marko says ‘excellent’ Laurent Mekies has concentrated well on Red Bull improvements

Max Verstappen could ‘explode’ about Red Bull’s 2026 car if they fail to deliver improvements relative to where they are now.

He wants to be competing for titles, and after turning down a potential move to Mercedes, he will want to see his faith repaid.

His new boss has been hard at work trying to deliver some results, with Marko telling Kleine Zeitung that Mekies has started making good changes.

“He’s been getting to grips with the team, familiarising himself with the structures and staff. In the medium term, we’re working on a kind of decentralisation,” he said.

“The individual departments will have their own heads, who will then largely report to Laurent. Rob Gray, for example, is heading the RB17 project, and Ben Hodgkinson is heading the engine department.

“They’ve been given a bit more responsibility for their areas. This allows Mekies to concentrate more on the race team. There’s already been progress there, because he’s simply an excellent technician.”

READ MORE: Helmut Marko might have already ruled out Red Bull signing Alex Palou as Max Verstappen’s teammate

Why Red Bull still haven’t given Yuki Tsunoda ‘parity’ with Max Verstappen yet

With 15 places between their drivers in the championship, it’s clear that Red Bull are dropping places in the constructors’ as a result of their second car.

No matter who they have put in the cockpit, they have struggled against Verstappen. The RB21, in particular, is a machine that even the Dutchman has struggled with.

Red Bull still haven’t given Tsunoda ‘parity’ with Verstappen despite the former being handed some upgrades before the summer break.

As the final 10 races of the season play out, expect to see the Red Bull drivers be a bit closer than usual, as Tsunoda plays a game of catch-up in the development race.