Former World Champion Jacques Villeneuve believes Red Bull is on a dangerous path: The team has “lost its luster” and “hasn’t hit rock bottom yet”
Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 Formula 1 world champion, has voiced strong criticism of the current situation at Red Bull. The Canadian is convinced that the Milton Keynes-based team has “lost its luster” after “getting rid of everyone who made this team what it is today.”
On the Sky Sports F1 Show following the Barcelona-Catalonia Grand Prix, the 55-year-old spoke about the team’s development and the ongoing speculation surrounding a possible departure by Max Verstappen, who is repeatedly linked to Mercedes.
“Well, they have to find a way to keep him there, because right now he’s the only thing left that’s good about the team—aside from the engine,” Villeneuve said. “Because as we’ve found out, the engine is very good, at least the internal combustion engine (ICE) part.”
“It’s become a very political place over the last two or three years. It seems like there’s so much internal conflict over who’s in charge, who’s doing this or that, and everyone’s been kicked out. It’s very hard to see a bright future at Red Bull. It’s really strange.”
Jacques Villeneuve: Red Bull has “lost its luster”
“They rode the wave of success,” the Canadian says, looking back on the world championship titles won by Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen. But “right now, things are going downhill, and they haven’t hit rock bottom yet. So this is a tough situation.”
For Villeneuve, the public perception of the team has fundamentally changed. “The team has lost its luster,” he is convinced. “No one talks about Red Bull anymore as the ‘crazy, fun, fast team that always finds a solution.’ No, they’re not even part of that equation anymore. We’re not talking about them.”
“All we talk about is: ‘It’s tough for Max, but thank God he’s there because he can still push this car to the limit.’ That’s pretty much the narrative right now. Not the team, but Max.” Very little remains of the once-successful team.
In recent years, Red Bull has had to cope with numerous high-profile departures, including Christian Horner, Jonathan Wheatley, Helmut Marko, and Adrian Newey. “So it’s a tough situation, but they’ve gotten rid of everyone who made this team what it is today,” says Villeneuve.
At Red Bull, “everything has been destroyed, somehow”
“That’s crazy, because even Max didn’t join until the team was already established,” recalls the 1997 world champion. “He was the final piece of the team, but now he’s the last soldier left. And that makes it really hard, because he can’t carry the team on his own.”
“He’s not a car designer. He’s very good at refining a car and saying what’s needed, but you still need people around you. But as you can see, even Helmut Marko was sidelined, and now it looks like the junior program… nobody’s talking about it anymore.”
“So, in a way, everything has been destroyed and needs to be rebuilt,” says Villeneuve. Despite his criticism, he still sees opportunities for the team’s future: “It will be rebuilt. To do that, we’ll have to wait until all the political issues are resolved.”