Red Bull’s start to the 2025 season has been far from smooth, but signs of progress are starting to show, especially between the races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia.

In Bahrain, Max Verstappen could only finish sixth, with his race compromised early on after being passed by Esteban Ocon, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, and Lewis Hamilton. Even with a tyre strategy switch from hard to used medium compounds, he crossed the line over 30 seconds behind McLaren’s Oscar Piastri.

By the time the championship reached Jeddah, things had improved significantly. Verstappen was in the fight for victory before receiving a five-second penalty for overtaking Piastri off-track. Speaking to Motorsport.com, Marko made it clear he disagreed with the stewards’ decision.

“I think it was a racing incident. If you watched F2, the same situation happened three or four times, and only Browning got a warning. Nobody got five seconds. Here, it was in the first lap, first corner. For me, it was a racing incident.” The team had briefly considered giving the position back but decided to continue and rely on pit strategy instead.

Despite the penalty, Red Bull found encouragement in their race performance. “Max had the speed, and the positive thing is, our tires did behave very well, we didn’t have any degradation,” said Marko.

He noted they were pleasantly surprised by how strong their pace was, particularly over a race distance on both the medium and hard tyres. “Compared to Bahrain, we made a big progress, but also this circuit suits us better. Faster corners and so on. We are moving forward and getting a car which is more predictable and is also working in a wider range.”

Looking ahead, Red Bull plans to build on that improvement with a steady series of upgrades across the next few races. “We will have small steps,” Marko explained, outlining a development plan that includes new components arriving in Miami and additional upgrades targeting the Grand Prix at Imola.

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The team believes this will put them in a stronger position to challenge McLaren. “I think by Imola we should be in a position that we also have the speed to beat the McLarens,” he said confidently.

These upgrades are not a single major package but rather a series of targeted improvements aimed at refining various aspects of the RB21, such as mechanical grip, aerodynamic balance, and overall car stability.

Although the characteristics of the Jeddah circuit helped highlight the car’s strengths, Red Bull is aware that it needs a more adaptable setup to perform consistently across different types of tracks. Marko underlined that they are moving forward, emphasising that a more predictable and well-rounded car will be key to returning to regular wins.