Kvyat says Red Bull ‘still up there with McLaren’ as he explains ‘catastrophic’ reason team mates have struggled to match Verstappen

Former Red Bull driver Daniil Kvyat insists that his old team’s 2025 car is fast enough to match current championship leaders McLaren, as he explained why the squad have struggled to fill the second seat alongside Max Verstappen in recent years.

Kvyat raced for Red Bull in 2015 and into 2016, before losing his seat midway through that year to Verstappen – who eventually went on to claim four consecutive titles with the team from 2021 to 2024.

Red Bull have been outgunned by McLaren in 2025, however, with Verstappen claiming two wins – including a stunning victory at last weekend’s Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix – to McLaren’s five.

Assessing the situation at his former team, Kvyat said: “Obviously in Red Bull, it’s a fast car still, but it seems to have a very narrow operating window, and obviously when you have a lot of experience with that car, as an engineer and driver, you can make a big difference, and you can still make that car very fast – if you put it in the operating window.

IMOLA, ITALY - MAY 17: Laurent Mekies, Team Principal of Visa Cash App Racing Bulls in the Pitlane — Daniil Kvyat speaks with Racing Bulls Team Principal Laurent Mekies in the Imola paddock

“Then if you don’t, obviously it seems like it’s far behind McLaren, but I think when it is in the operating window, it’s up there with McLaren. In Qualifying, maybe with new tyres, better grip, it masks a bit the difference in the race trim, like we saw maybe in Miami, where McLaren was able to be very consistent, with the traction, lap after lap, look after the tyres, look after the tyre temperature and everything.

“That’s what makes a difference at this level, when the gaps are so tight and narrow.”

Asked for his view on whether the Red Bull RB21 was tailor-made to suit Verstappen’s driving style – and thus why Verstappen’s former team mates, including Sergio Perez, have struggled to match him in the team – Kvyat replied: “It can be and it would be of course logical.

“But obviously like I said, I think the question is a lot of details in Formula 1 cars: there is tyre temperature, tyre operating window, there is a set-up, there is an aero window – it’s very complicated. If one piece of the puzzle is missing, the results can be catastrophic.

IMOLA, ITALY - MAY 18: Race winner Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing — Verstappen secured a stunning Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix win, his second victory of the season

“You can be a good driver, but if you don’t put the car and tyres in that window, you will lack half a second. It’s normal, and that’s also one of the things that I had to learn how to deal with in my first years in F1. It’s a very interesting process, but if you get lost in it, it can really ruin your chances, and with Checo [Perez] – I don’t know, I didn’t drive that car, so I can’t tell you for sure.”

With Red Bull having struggled to find a second driver to match Verstappen in recent times – Liam Lawson having been dropped from the team after two races this season to be replaced by Yuki Tsunoda, who could only finish 10th at Imola after a huge Qualifying crash – Kvyat gave his view on the situation at his former squad, and whether benching Lawson had been the right move.

“It’s tough, they are the team, they know what’s best for them,” Kvyat said. “But of course, they have one part of the team [in Verstappen] that looks like they are perfect, they work really well. But then the other part is slightly… everything seems to be a little bit messier.

“I don’t know, I can’t tell the details, without being a part of the team for sure. What I know is, it is a fast car when you make it work – and why they can’t make it work is another question.”