Thursday: Red Bull encounters some reliability issues

Red Bull Racing team experienced its first reliability issues of the year today in Monaco. In the morning, both drivers had to stop prematurely. Vettel due to a problem with the Renault engine, and Webber due to a transmission issue.

In the afternoon, the mechanics seemed more reliable, allowing the drivers to somewhat catch up with the competition. At the end of this first day, the Red Bull still seems to be performing well and has the means to scare the competition: the RB5 indeed features the double diffuser, which was absent until now. Confidence is high.

Sebastian Vettel – 13th and 6th:

« We had an engine failure in the morning which cost us quite a bit of time. It’s precious for both the driver and the car to find the best rhythm. Nevertheless, the mechanics did a great job repairing and changing the parts that arrived a few hours ago. We are still working to improve the car and analyze the data collected, especially on the tires. We are in a good position for now, but we continue to aim for the top. »

Mark Webber – 10th and 12th:

« We had a mix of a bit of everything we could have in a single day today. First, we didn’t have a clear stint to understand the car’s true performance, then we had reliability issues, a first since the start of the season. There were vibrations on the rear axle this morning, so I stopped quite early, and in the afternoon, it was better. I never got a clear lap to set a good time, but we managed to do laps and gather data to analyze for Saturday. I feel like we are quite competitive here, so the race is going to be quite exciting! »