– “Things are a bit topsy-turvy there,” judges Ralf Schumacher after the first three races of the 2026 Formula 1 season about Red Bull. The Bulls are currently only in sixth place in the constructors’ world championship, behind Haas and Alpine.
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In the podcast Backstage Boxengasse from Sky, Schumacher explains that Pierre Wache is among those responsible for this false start. “In my view, the shoes are too big for him,” says Schumacher about Wache, who has been responsible for the cars at Red Bull since Adrian Newey’s departure.
“I wouldn’t say that he should be completely replaced in the team,” says Schumacher, but it is obvious that Wache needs support. Because even the RB21 from the 2025 season was partially “undriveable,” the expert emphasizes.
“He took over the project from Adrian Newey and then developed it in his direction,” Schumacher explains, recalling in particular the middle part of the 2025 season when Red Bull was no longer competitive. It was only in the second half of the season that they were back at the front.
According to Schumacher, in 2026 they have once again built a car that is hardly controllable for the drivers. “Obviously, the car is a disaster. I mean, how often have we seen Max Verstappen off the track now? That never happened before,” says Schumacher.
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Schumacher: Helmut Marko is also missing at Red Bull
Verstappen’s teammate Isack Hadjar, who moved from Racing Bulls to Red Bull in 2026, recently explained in this context: “The old car was difficult to drive, but it was fast. Our current car is difficult to drive and slow on top of that.”
In this regard, Hadjar’s former team “did a better job,” Schumacher finds. Sister team Racing Bulls has scored points in every race so far in 2026 and is currently only two points behind the A-team in the world championship.
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Rookie Arvid Lindblad drove into the points in eighth place right in his Formula 1 debut in Melbourne. “That shows how difficult the Red Bull must be to drive [in comparison],” explains Schumacher, who emphasizes: “So I am of the opinion that things are going up in flames in the background.”
This also applies to aspects off the track, by the way. For example, there is currently “no proper communication to the outside” at Red Bull, the Sky expert complains, explaining: “In my opinion, Dr. Helmut Marko as a figure is also missing there to provide a guideline.”
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The Austrian had left Red Bull at the end of the 2025 season.
