Nico Rosberg highlights key reason behind ‘brain drain’ at Red Bull

Follow us on Google Discover

Nico Rosberg believes Red Bull is experiencing a ‘brain drain’ after their latest defeat at the Italian Grand Prix.

Max Verstappen finished in sixth place and 37 seconds off eventual winner Charles Leclerc, while teammate Sergio Perez failed to improve on his qualifying position and finished in eighth.

It was the sixth race in a row that Verstappen has lost having not won a race since the Spanish GP in June, while it was the third time in four races that Red Bull did not finish on the podium.

In a season that started off promising for Red Bull, it has turned into a nightmare as they have encountered problems with the RB20 since adding upgrades.

Christan Horner remarked that Red Bull now has the fourth fastest car after their difficult qualifying performance, as the team is now seeking out an engineering issue to an engineering problem.

Former F1 driver and 2016 World Champion Nico Rosberg, has highlighted a key reason behind their recent struggles when speaking on Sky Sports.

Nico Rosberg believes Adrian Newey departure behind recent Red Bull struggles

Red Bull has been impacted by a number of exits since the start of the season, including legendary designer Adrian Newey, who announced he would be leaving at the end of the season.

Newey is expected to take up a position at Aston Martin, while Red Bull is now having to solve its problems to get its title defence back on track in the last eight races.

Rosberg believes Newey’s influence is likely behind the recent ‘brain drain’ at the World Champions, which could complicate things in the long run.

“It’s probably not as extreme as this, I think they will come back into the mix in the next couple of races because in Zandvoort they were still very strong and finished second. But they lost their way and I’m not sure they can turn it around easy,” said Rosberg.

“Adrian is perhaps the greatest genius in F1 that we’ve seen, so I’m sure he would’ve had a positive impact on this car. But it’s more difficult without him and that role model and figure that everybody looks up to.

“So when he leaves, it also accelerates the brain drain because everybody is like ‘Well if he’s not here anymore, maybe I’ll go elsewhere and take on another challenge because I liked working with Adrian’ so it just spirals.”

Red Bull now focusing on Drivers’ Championship

After a disappointing result at Monza, McLaren has now closed the gap to Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship to within eight points having at one stage faced a 100-point deficit at the start of the season.

With Norris moving to within 62 points of Verstappen in the Drivers’ Championship, there is a very real threat that he could face defeat in the final eight races.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Red Bull Racing from engine to Ford links

A senior member of Red Bull reportedly told someone in McLaren that their focus is now on defending Verstappen’s crown, as the Woking squad looks to secure their first Constructors’ title since 1998.

Norris has to rely on his McLaren team to back him over Oscar Piastri, but so far the Australian has made things more difficult by scoring more points than the Briton.