Martin Brundle’s ‘truly epic 18 months’ prediction after startling Red Bull observation
Martin Brundle predicts F1 is in for a ‘truly epic 18 months’ of racing
The Red Bull may no longer be the “fastest car”, but with that playing a part in creating a sixth different winner for this season at Silverstone, Martin Brundle believes F1 is in for a “truly epic 18 months of racing”.
Having dominated last year’s championship in record-breaking fashion with the most wins in a championship, the biggest winning margin, and a 10-race victory streak, this season Max Verstappen and Red Bull are having to work for their wins.
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So much so the Dutchman’s back-to-back losses in Austria and Silverstone marked the first time since 2022 that he lost two races in succession, those also being that year’s British and Austrian races.
In total Verstappen has lost five Grands Prix this season, but as they were all won by different drivers, he is not only holding onto P1 in the Drivers’ standings but has managed to extend his advantage to 84 points over Lando Norris.
It has, however, put a bit more pressure on Red Bull in the Constructors’ Championship where they are 71 points ahead of Ferrari with McLaren a further seven off the pace.
But it is the Woking team that Red Bull have to keep an eye on as they have narrowed their deficit from 115 points after Norris’ win in Miami to 78 today.
Brundle reckons Red Bull’s RB20 is no longer the pick of the field.
Verstappen qualified P4 with a broken floor for the British Grand Prix before crossing the line in second place in a Red Bull, which Brundle wrote in his Sky column, “no longer looks the fastest car, and from time to time a bit of a handful, given the improvements from McLaren and Mercedes.”
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Martin Brundle predicts a ‘truly epic 18 months’ of F1 racing
Verstappen struggled in the early laps of the British Grand Prix with graining while his RB20 was a handful on the slick tyres when the rain came down.
He, however, recovered in the final stint on the hard tyres on a dry track to take second off Norris in a race where it initially looked as if P5 was his best hope.
“Verstappen lacked dry pace in his Red Bull in the early stages and says that he was imagining a fifth or sixth-place finish. But he stuck with it, worked well with his engineer, and fired up his new hard compound tyres very well to set off after Norris and Hamilton in the closing stages,” Brundle said.
“He easily dispatched Norris, who was struggling for handling balance on the soft tyres, and then closed to within a second-and-a-half of Hamilton when the chequered flag was unfurled on lap 52 to a rapturous response from the crowd.
“Max is not the fourth driver to feel he should have won the race, he was pleasantly surprised with second place and yet again extending his championship lead, to a healthy 84 points.”
As for the fourth driver, that was Lewis Hamilton who watched as George Russell, briefly Oscar Piastri and then Lando Norris led the race.
But taking the lead after the second round of pit stops, the Briton raced to his ninth Silverstone win, 150th Mercedes podium and in doing so became the sixth different winner of the championship.
“Of course, the fourth driver who could have won did indeed do so, and in some style,” Brundle continued.
“Hamilton managed his tyres well in the final 14 laps and held off his old nemesis for his ninth victory at Silverstone, some 17 years after his first in F1, giving him 104 wins and 199 podium trophies in his career so far.
“He also became the sixth winner in the 12 races so far this season. We only had three winners in all last season, and I have no doubt that we are in for a truly epic 18 months of F1 racing now, before the all-new 2026 cars appear.”
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