Azerbaijan GP: McLaren and Red Bull arrive in Baku under pressure amid title battles

8 September 2024, 13:02 | Updated: 9 September 2024, 10:36

Their recent form couldn't be in much greater contrast, but both Red Bull and McLaren will arrive at this weekend's Azerbaijan Grand Prix under extreme pressure.

McLaren's Lando Norris reduced Max Verstappen's Drivers' Championship lead to 62 points, but it was far from a perfect weekend for the Brit last time out at the Italian Grand Prix.

Despite Norris' and McLaren's imperfections, they were able to reduce Red Bull's advantage at the top of the Constructors' Championship to just eight points, heightening the chances of a different squad leading the teams' standings for the first time since May 2022.

Lando Norris: Early career struggles with pressure helping in title race
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Red Bull appear to be in freefall, with balance issues on the RB20 troubling both Verstappen and team-mate Sergio Perez in Monza.

A season which started with Red Bull and Verstappen in total control is now threatening to produce two of the most remarkable comebacks in the history of the sport.

With just eight of 24 rounds remaining, the stakes are rising all the time and will surely reach a new level of intensity on the rapid Baku City Circuit this weekend.

McLaren team orders saga reaching point of no return

Looking at the results alone, one could be forgiven for assuming that McLaren would be arriving in Baku riding a huge wave of positivity.

The Woking squad have secured at least one podium in each of the last 12 races and have had the most consistently quick car on the grid since bringing a major upgrade package to May's Miami Grand Prix.

Recent races suggest there is little doubt about the destination of the constructors' title, with Red Bull apparently powerless to resist the consistency of the MCL38 and excellence of Norris and Piastri.

However, what could most kindly be described as 'growing pains' have prevented McLaren's season from being even better, with the most prominent issue at this point undoubtedly their approach to team orders.

The issue first flashed up before the summer break when a radio drama saw Norris urged to give the lead back to Piastri at the Hungarian Grand Prix after the team's strategy choice had resulted in the Brit gaining track position.

After ultimately almost being begged to give the position back, as he was told he might need Piastri's help later in the season, Norris finally gave in.

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella insisted the team had no intention of prioritising Norris' title quest, but chief executive Zak Brown said the matter would be discussed over the summer break.

Fast forward a few weeks to when Norris had reduced Verstappen's lead to 70 points with a dominant win at the Dutch Grand Prix and then taken pole ahead of Piastri at Monza with Red Bull struggling, and much of the talk on the morning of the race centred around it surely being time for McLaren to instruct the Australian to play a supporting role.

That appeared to be happening at the first chicane as the McLarens went through in formation, but Piastri then made what Brown would later describe as an "aggressive" move into the second chicane, apparently surprising and passing Norris.

Pushed off the racing line, the Brit also lost second to Charles Leclerc, who would go on to pull off a stunning home victory for Ferrari which would have been near impossible had the McLarens retained the top two positions during the first stint.

Piastri finished second after failing to chase down Leclerc in the closing stages, with McLaren apparently not considering switching Norris up a place from third to aid his Drivers' Championship chances.

The Brit sent out mixed messages after the race as he said that Piastri's move could have easily caused a crash and that he would "love" his team's full backing, but that it was a "tough one".

Stella and Brown both said that McLaren would review the incident, while the former hinted for the first time, citing Verstappen's stunning drop-off in form, that the team want to "give it a go at the championship with Lando".

After a weekend off, it will quite possibly become clear in Azerbaijan whether McLaren's stance has changed, as there is every chance they will continue to have the fastest car.

Their explanation for the Hungary episode was that denying Piastri a maiden grand prix victory would have damaged the team's relationship with the driver, but at this point it is surely Norris who must be questioning the level of support he is being provided with.

Red Bull running out of ideas

In the Verstappen era, there has been absolutely no doubt who the top driver at Red Bull is.

But at this point, team principal Christian Horner would probably love to be dealing with a question as simple as which driver to throw his support behind.

Instead, the reigning constructors' champions appear to be completely lost in their attempts to reverse a remarkable dip.

Verstappen won four of the first five races of the season in one-twos from Perez and appeared set to continue the historic level of dominance he and his team delivered in 2023.

But from about the moment Norris won in his upgraded car in Miami, Red Bull's advantage was gradually eroded, before it began to become a disadvantage, sometimes also to Mercedes and Ferrari depending on the circuit.

That weekend in Miami was also when Adrian Newey left his position as the team's technical director, which some suspect has been a factor in their apparent loss of direction.

Major upgrade packages brought to Imola and Hungary failed to deliver the desired impact, and the team are now six races without a win, having picked up just two podium finishes in that time.

After running different specifications of their car at the Dutch Grand Prix, Red Bull arrived in Monza insisting they had now understood their issues, but there was no evidence of that as Verstappen finished sixth and Perez eighth.

The week off before the race in Azerbaijan has provided more time for reflection, but what is clear at this point is that without an upturn in performance, Verstappen is at major risk of being chased down by Norris.

Given Azerbaijan, and Singapore which follows a week later, are not tracks that would necessarily be expected to suit the characteristics the RB20 has exhibited this year, it would actually feel like something of a turn-up if Verstappen's winless streak were to end at either.

The other problem for Red Bull is Perez's continued struggles, with the Mexican not having claimed a podium since April's Chinese Grand Prix.

While there is little doubt Verstappen will get the most out of the car, whatever state it is in, Perez's struggles and the resulting speculation over his future provide the team and Horner with an additional distraction they could do without.

Sky Sports F1's live Azerbaijan GP schedule

Thursday September 12
12pm: Drivers' Press Conference

Friday September 13
7.55am: F2 Practice
10am: Azerbaijan GP Practice One (session starts 10.30am)
11.55am: F2 Qualifying
1.45pm: Azerbaijan GP Practice Two (session starts 2pm)
3.15pm: The F1 Show

Saturday September 14
9.15am: Azerbaijan GP Practice Three (session starts 9.30am)
11.10am: F2 Sprint
12.15pm: Azerbaijan GP Qualifying build-up
1pm: AZERBAIJAN GP QUALIFYING*
3pm: Ted's Qualifying Notebook

Sunday September 15
8.30am: F2 Feature Race
10:30am: Grand Prix Sunday: Azerbaijan GP build-up*
12pm: The AZERBAIJAN GRAND PRIX*
2pm: Chequered Flag: Azerbaijan GP reaction
3pm: Ted's Notebook

*also live on Sky Sports Main Event

Formula 1 leaves mainland Europe for Baku and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix this weekend, live on Sky Sports F1. Stream every F1 race and more with a NOW Sports Month Membership - No contract, cancel anytime