Jos Verstappen, father of Max Verstappen, asserts that Red Bull's time at the dominant pinnacle of Formula 1 "is over."
Having been away from the paddock during Red Bull's recent turbulence, which involves a leadership crisis and issues involving Christian Horner, Jos made his comments upon returning in Monaco.
He had foreseen, weeks ago, that the team might disintegrate if Horner continued as the team principal.
During his return to the Monaco Grand Prix, Jos observed signs that his predictions about the team's downturn might now be manifesting.
"There will certainly be races where Red Bull will look good again," he remarked to De Telegraaf. "But I am curious how they will solve this problem."
"Something has to be done at Red Bull," he stated, suggesting a need for intervention.
Dr. Helmut Marko admits the team is puzzled by discrepancies between simulator results and actual track performance, particularly with the car's response to bumps and curbs, something Max Verstappen and the engineers find baffling.
"They have to find out where the problems come from. It is clear that McLaren and Ferrari are getting closer. Max was able to mask it somewhat, but you can see how big the difference was between him and his teammate. It seems to me that the dominant period for Red Bull is over," Jos pointed out.
He also linked the performance issues to the ongoing internal disputes that have already cost them Adrian Newey's future involvement.
"They may have to concentrate a little more on racing and on mutual communication, instead of on other things," Jos suggested.
In contrast, Horner believes that on-track performance and the off-track "noise" are unrelated.
"The big lesson I've learned is that when I enter the garage, everything is normal," he explained to RTBF. "This is also reflected in the results, which were generally very good in this first part of the season. The noise comes from outside."
Horner highlighted Max Verstappen's commitment to addressing these issues. "He tells it like it is and ensures everyone is focused," Horner noted. "We had a very good team meeting. Max puts a lot of effort into spending time with the engineers in the evening."
"There is no magic solution, we just have to work hard and understand the problem," Horner concluded.
McLaren's Andrea Stella is among those puzzled by Red Bull's predicament. "I have no idea what's happening there," the team principal admitted. "I think we need a few races to find out. After this we go to Canada, where the bumps and kerbs are also crucial. That might provide a better insight."
Horner remains optimistic: "We don't suddenly have a bad car. We now go to Montreal, Barcelona, Austria, and Silverstone - let's see where we stand after that. It's a marathon, not a sprint, and we're still leading both championships."
