Christian Horner explains why Max Verstappen’s “abnormal” driving style destroys his team-mates

The narrative surrounding Red Bull Racing over the last half-decade has consistently featured a rotating cast of drivers struggling – and often failing – to survive alongside Max Verstappen.

Former team principal Christian Horner recently provided a technical explanation for the phenomenon.

Speaking on the High Performance podcast, Horner revealed that the infamous “curse” of the second Red Bull seat is actually rooted in the engineering department’s attempt to satisfy Verstappen’s unique physical inputs. 

“Max is tremendously demanding for what he wants, and he has a skill that is abnormal,” Horner explained when reflecting on his time leading the squad.

Building an ‘unbalanced’ machine

In Formula 1, a car set-up is typically a compromise between understeer and oversteer. Most drivers prefer a relatively predictable balance, allowing them to build confidence through the corners and apply the throttle on exit without making constant, sudden corrections. 

Verstappen, however, operates on the extreme end of the set-up spectrum. He possesses an exceptional ability to artificially balance a loose, sliding rear end, allowing him to demand hyper-responsive steering that rotates the car aggressively upon entry. 

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, with Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

“He demands more and more front end from the car, and he can just cope with whatever the rear does in pursuit of that goal,” Horner noted. 

Because Verstappen’s ceiling of performance is so incredibly high when he is given this extreme set-up, the entire Red Bull technical development path naturally follows his feedback to extract maximum lap time from the chassis. 

“Inevitably, your engineering department, your tools, your development focus goes down the route of creating that characteristic in a car, which others found difficult to handle,” Horner admitted. 

While Verstappen has used this hyper-responsive front end to secure multiple world championships, his team-mates, who rely on a more traditional, predictable car balance, have routinely found themselves wrestling a machine they cannot trust.

As Horner explained, drivers stepping into the second Red Bull is not just fighting Verstappen; they are fighting a car engineered against their natural driving preferences.

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– The Motorsport.com Team