Red Bull ready ‘central’ Miami Grand Prix upgrades to address ‘fundamental’ RB22 weight disadvantage

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Red Bull are now set to debut a host of updates at the 2026 F1 Miami Grand Prix, with reducing the RB22’s weight central to their plan for Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar.

The Milton Keynes crew had a frustrating start to the season in Australia, China and Japan as Verstappen and Hadjar saw the RB22’s early flaws become clear. So, Red Bull have utilised the five-week break since the last race to prepare upgrades that they will now run in Miami.

Almost all of the 11 teams are expected to reveal at least a few updates at the Miami GP, as well, after the gap in the calendar from the cancellations of the rounds in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Red Bull hope that their upgrades make the RB22 a podium-contending package.

Verstappen has yet to finish a Grand Prix higher than his P6 in Australia, where he recovered from starting in P20 after crashing during Q1, while Hadjar has yet to eclipse his P8 in China. The Dutchman and the Frenchman have both blamed Red Bull’s chassis for their woes so far.

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Weight reduction is ‘central’ to Red Bull’s Miami Grand Prix upgrade plan

Verstappen called his Red Bull “undriveable” in Japan owing to its chronic balance problems, while Hadjar branded the RB22’s chassis “terrible”. They encountered understeer on turn-in, oversteer under acceleration, and Red Bull’s 2026 F1 regulations chassis is also overweight.

READ MORE: Five unforgettable Miami Grand Prix moments, including Lando Norris’ crash

So, according to RacingNews365, Red Bull have made reducing the weight of the RB22 with their upgrades at the Miami GP the ‘central’ part of their plan. It is a ‘fundamental’ issue as Verstappen and Hadjar are at a disadvantage in several ways that Red Bull hope to address.

Red Bull have used the break since the Japanese Grand Prix to design new components that look ‘identical’ but weigh a lot less than before. The team hope that the updates make their chassis lighter and also improve their energy efficiency, before any major changes are ready.

It has been said since the 2026 season started in Australia in March that the Red Bull RB22 is around 10kg overweight, which equates to a loss of almost three-tenths of a second per lap. Hadjar qualified P3 in Australia, but was 0.785s off the pole position time George Russell set.

Qualifying proved to be a much bigger problem for Red Bull in China and Japan, with Alpine ace Pierre Gasly able to out-qualify Verstappen and Hadjar at both rounds. Verstappen in P8 was 0.938s off pole in China as the lead Red Bull and Hadjar was 1.2s off pole in P8 in Japan.

Verstappen even failed to reach a Q3 session at Suzuka for the first time since 2015 with his P11 during qualifying for the 2026 Japanese GP. His failure to make the top-10 shootout, on top of his issues with the 2026 regulations, sparked Verstappen’s threats to retire from F1.