Rob Smedley isn't holding back on Red Bull's 2026 season, and honestly, you can't blame the former Ferrari engineer for laying it straight. The 52-year-old British mechanic has come out swinging, saying the Milton Keynes outfit should be performing significantly better than what we've seen so far. Speaking on the High Performance podcast, Smedley highlighted how Red Bull has been battling what he describes as basic problems throughout the early part of the campaign.

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The core issue? There's something different going wrong almost every single weekend. That's essentially what Max Verstappen himself pointed out, and Smedley's assessment basically backs up exactly what the three-time world champion has been saying. Even with some improvement as the season heads into the summer break, Red Bull's first eleven races have been a far cry from what the team is capable of delivering. The fact that they're still chasing their first win of the year shows just how much ground they've lost.

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To be fair, Red Bull has tightened things up a bit recently. At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Max Verstappen managed to finish ahead of both Mercedes drivers, who've been the benchmark all season. That's something at least. But when you've got a driver of Verstappen's caliber and you're still struggling to get your act together midway through the season, Smedley's criticism stings because he's absolutely right. The team needs to sort out these recurring gremlins fast.

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The bigger picture here is that Red Bull's transition into being a power unit supplier this season has clearly created complications they're still working through. But Smedley's point is valid, simple and straightforward, the team has to be doing better. With top talent on the grid and resources most teams would kill for, continuing to face basic issues week after week is simply unacceptable for a team of Red Bull's pedigree.

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