Red Bull Brings Second Major 2026 Upgrade to Home Race in Austria

Red Bull's Austrian upgrade in context

Red Bull Racing will bring its second major upgrade package of the 2026 Formula 1 season to the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on 26-28 June. This will be Red Bull's second major upgrade of the year. ^[1] The primary focus is trimming the remaining excess weight from the RB22. One of the potential gains the Austrian package can deliver is further weight reduction, as Red Bull is still understood to be above the minimum weight allowed by the regulations; the Miami package also featured weight-saving measures, and Technical Director Pierre Waché indicated that the plan was to reach the minimum weight allowed, 768 kg, with the Austrian package. ^[2]

The weight problem and Miami's first step

In Miami, Red Bull managed to reduce the RB22's excess weight from 12 to six kilograms, after which plans were made to bring the cars of Verstappen and Hadjar down to the FIA minimum weight within two months, set at 768 kg this year. ^[2] The Miami package went far beyond weight savings alone. Red Bull's dramatic competitive turnaround in Miami coincided with another major upgrade of the RB22; front wing, brake ducts, floor, sidepods, engine cover, diffuser and rear wing were all changed in what was a very major project, to which was added some cockpit changes and a steering rack modification. ^[3] Among the changes was a rollout of Red Bull's own version of the 'Macarena' rotating rear wing, as well as revised front wing elements and endplates, front corner bodywork, and revised floor bib surfaces with adaptations made to the engine cover and sidepod inlets. ^[5]

Mekies confirms the Austria plan

Team principal Laurent Mekies has publicly confirmed the upgrade is coming to the team's home race. Red Bull Racing wants to introduce a substantial update package at its home Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring; the RB22's excess weight needs to disappear there. ^[4] Mekies framed the development challenge in broader competitive terms as well. "The picture of the season is these performance variations based on who is bringing his upgrade," he said. "Ferrari made a big step forward. Obviously, our next big one is in Austria. But, you know, it's only as good as the real lap time on track it brings. Everyone in Milton Keynes has been working very hard for that package." ^[1]

Barcelona underlined the urgency

The need for the Austria package was reinforced at the Madrid and Barcelona rounds of the 2026 season, where Red Bull struggled for pace. With the new regulations in 2026, the development battle between the teams is playing a major role in shaping the pecking order; Ferrari's upgrade helped it make a step forward in Barcelona, and Lewis Hamilton converted that into victory. ^[1] Finishing fourth, Max Verstappen managed to maximise the result in a weekend where Red Bull Racing did not have the pace to seriously fight with Ferrari, Mercedes, and McLaren. ^[4]

:::analysis Reaching the FIA's 768 kg minimum weight would remove the single most quantifiable structural disadvantage the RB22 has carried since the season opened. A car running overweight is not just slower in a straight line; it is harder on tyres, less responsive through direction changes, and more sensitive to fuel load swings across a race stint. If the Austria package delivers what Waché targeted back in May, Red Bull could arrive at Silverstone with a genuinely neutral weight balance for the first time in 2026, placing the competitive focus back on aerodynamic development where all four leading teams are more evenly matched.

The timing at a home race also matters for team morale and sponsorship optics, even if that is impossible to quantify in lap time. Whether the package translates to podium pace depends on whether rivals Ferrari, McLaren, and Mercedes stand still, which the first half of the season suggests they will not. :::

Related reading

• Tire degradation at the Red Bull Ring
• Undercut strategy explained