Mekies: Qualifying pace 'big indication' of Red Bull recovery

Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies has identified a "big indication" of the team's recovery following a difficult start to the season: a dramatic improvement in qualifying pace at the Miami Grand Prix. After trailing by over a second in Japan and China, Verstappen closed to within two-tenths of pole during the main qualifying session, signaling a significant step forward over the spring break.

Why it matters:

Red Bull's early-season struggles saw them fall behind rivals in both single-lap and race pace. The progress made in Miami — particularly in qualifying — suggests the team has addressed core issues and is now back in the competitive conversation, even if not yet at the front.

The details:

• Mekies benchmarked the improvement against Verstappen's deficits in Japan (1.2s off pole) and China (1.0s off pole).
• In Miami sprint qualifying, Verstappen was 0.6s adrift; in grand prix qualifying, he was less than 0.2s away — earning a front-row start.
• The Dutchman then spun on lap 1 of the main race, forcing an alternate strategy, but still finished 5th. Mekies believes race pace was strong enough to fight for P3–P5.
• The team principal cautioned that the exact representative gap remains unclear, but called the progress "much better than anything we have been able to show this year."
• Mekies credited the entire team in Milton Keynes for an "important step forward" while acknowledging "we have not cracked everything we wanted to."

What's next:

The development race continues, and Red Bull knows rivals will bring updates to the next round. However, the Miami weekend offered a clear sign that the team has unlocked performance — and with Verstappen's talent, even a small gain could put them back in podium contention regularly.