As the Red Bull driver struggled to make up ground and come back after a mistake sent him into the gravel on lap 9, his chances of passing George Russell were hampered by a DRS that was not working consistently.
Mobile wing activation problems had already affected him in qualifying and prevented Max Verstappen from taking pole position with Charles Leclerc on his last attempt.
That had prompted the team to make changes in parc fermé conditions before the race to try and resolve the issue.
In the official FIA technical delegate’s pre-race report, which indicates which parts are changed without penalty because they are of a similar base, Red Bull opted to replace the DRS actuator and flap moving pins from Verstappen’s RB18 .
Clearly, that wasn’t enough to completely resolve the issue, suggesting that the mishap is more than just a single item failing.
Mechanics work on Max Verstappen’s DRS, Red Bull RB18
In fact, as you can see in the image above, the problem doesn’t seem to revolve solely around the trigger mechanism.
As this exclusive photo shows, it appears the Austrian outfit were concerned about stress-related cracks or fractures they may have found during post-qualifying wing checks.
As such, they repaired a large section of the upper wing, and re-applied the stickers with the sponsor logos before the car made it to the grid.
Interestingly, although Sergio Pérez had not suffered the problem in qualifying and did not have his DRS activator or pins replaced before the race, the same corrections were applied to his rear wing upper flap.
The DRS issue bears similarities to the ones the team suffered towards the end of last season. However, it is unclear whether it is the mechanism that causes stress-induced flap failure, or vice versa.
Speaking after the Spanish GP race, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner suggested the problem revolved around the team making the parts too light in that area of the car, with a potentially more flexible and susceptible wing. to damage.
“Of course we are looking at every ounce of performance and weight is also a factor,” he explained. “Perhaps we have been too ambitious in that.”
“But I think we need to understand exactly what the problem is because we thought we had a solution. Unfortunately it didn’t turn out to be a reliable solution for the whole race.”
The first signs of problems with Red Bull’s DRS appeared at last season’s Dutch Grand Prix , when Verstappen failed to open his wing flap on the way to the finish during qualifying.
There were no further problems that weekend, but repairs between qualifying and racing became a recurring theme during the final grands prix of 2021.
It was also noted, in those last few races, that the failure of the flap and the DRS mechanism was accompanied by flapping of the upper flap when the DRS was deployed, something that was also seen in free practice at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Red Bull will be keen to resolve those issues as quickly as possible. Because not only does he have an open direct fight against Ferrari, but, as the Spanish Grand Prix showed, Mercedes has also become a factor to watch from now on.
