Max Verstappen is now benefiting from one ‘common sense’ change Laurent Mekies has made at Red Bull

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Max Verstappen gave Red Bull’s new team principal Laurent Mekies his first pole position at the Italian Grand Prix. The reigning world champion was largely unfancied heading into the weekend, but to quote Mekies, he was ‘untouchable’ in Q3.

Verstappen’s last pole position came at the British GP, shortly before Christian Horner was sacked. Since then, results have varied.

A Sprint win in Belgium in Mekies’ maiden weekend preceded a reality-check P4 on the Sunday. The Hungarian GP was a disaster as Verstappen came home ninth on pure pace, but a runner-up finish at Zandvoort was a stabiliser.

Verstappen, more than 100 points behind Oscar Piastri, has already conceded the championship. For Red Bull, the final third of the season is about returning to their operational peak in preparation for 2026.

Helmut Marko says Red Bull are now using more ‘common sense’ with Max Verstappen

Back in July, it was reported that Mekies was reviewing Red Bull’s use of simulation tools. He suspected that this was contributing to poor Friday-practice performances that often required radical set-up overhauls.

As Helmut Marko explained to De Telegraaf, Red Bull have now reduced their reliance on the simulator, and scrapped their policy of running a lower engine mode in non-competitive sessions.

Mekies has a narrower remit than Horner but, as team principal and a former engineer, he’s in control of the overall race-weekend approach. Marko says Red Bull are now using their ‘common sense’ to make the necessary adjustments to the car.

“Unlike before, we no longer run with a lower engine setting on that day,” he said. “And besides, we no longer rely entirely on what the simulator tells us.

“We rely more on our own observations. Max has so much experience now, as do his engineers, of course. We might be using a bit more common sense.”

Red Bull have addressed one of Max Verstappen’s biggest gripes from the Christian Horner era

The report from De Telegraaf adds that Red Bull are taking Verstappen’s input ‘more and more seriously’. One might have assumed, given his success, that this was always the case.

But reports after Horner’s sacking revealed that Verstappen felt some of his concerns were being ignored. Perhaps the team underestimated the depth of their problems after four straight drivers’ titles.

‘Leaks’ during the winter suggested that Red Bull had kept the same development path for 2025 even after Verstappen expressed opposition. Perhaps there has been a redistribution of influence under the new setup.

It’s vital that Red Bull make Verstappen feel heard amid lingering doubts about his future beyond 2026. Mekies can’t do much to influence car performance for the moment, but he can immediately implement some of his superstar’s requests.