Red Bull upgrade package lifts Verstappen in Baku
NXTbets Pro | Published On: October 9, 2026
Red Bull upgrade
Red Bull’s RB22 upgrade package made a clear impression in Baku, where the team’s changes delivered a clear step forward. The update brought new sidepods, floor geometry and flow-conditioning changes, and Oscar Piastri said Red Bull had joined Mercedes as “the class of the field” after the package arrived in Azerbaijan. Verstappen ran strongly in Baku, then finished on the podium with Isack Hadjar, while also applying pressure to George Russell. The same upgrade direction had already helped Verstappen win in Malaysia.
McLaren struggles
McLaren brought updates of its own to Baku. Lando Norris said McLaren needed to solve straightline-speed and car-balance problems, and he said the team was not matching the form it showed earlier in the season. Piastri added that McLaren had not been strong in slow corners or on street circuits, which left his expectations modest for Singapore. The team also expected to bring a fix for recent fuel-injection problems to Singapore. McLaren had slipped after Norris won in Hungary and Zandvoort. Piastri said McLaren and Ferrari had been trading pace, but he also said McLaren continued to underperform. Both McLaren drivers were outside the top five in Malaysia.
Mercedes response
Mercedes faces Red Bull’s upgraded package, and Juan Pablo Montoya offered a blunt read on where that leaves the Silver Arrows. He said Mercedes are now “terrified” of Red Bull after Verstappen dominated Kimi Antonelli and George Russell at the Bahrain Grand Prix, and he said Mercedes struggled to match Verstappen’s pace. The team plans to run an A/B test of aero parts at the Singapore Grand Prix.
