“The car is evolving this weekend, every weekend. It is a repeated refrain from a man who has been in the game his entire life but still takes nothing for granted, including this weekend at Silverstone, a home race for the team from Milton Keynes and a track very much suited to the Red Bull. You take pride in it but the best thing we do is learn from it,” he says. “There was a combination of relief and pride. An indication that their car was formidably potent but also that the team were able to adapt and react with skill and cohesion.įor Pedals it was a further spur. It was nice to see us face that situation and there was no in-fighting, there was a discussion, it went in the right direction and when put it in the sweet spot, each practice was better, qualifying was acceptable, and the race was wonderful.”Īfter an “acceptable” qualifying Verstappen took pole and then went on to win on a track that was least suited of all the races this season to the strengths of the Red Bull.
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“It’s race engineer, driver and the research tools at the factory. “Max said on Friday morning: ‘I am coming in, I am going to shunt if I carry on like this.’ I don’t think it was even a raceable car at that point. “Listen to the radio messages from Monaco,” he says. It is just the car, isn’t it? The team are coasting, are they not? He smiles and considers it again. He has seen every side of F1 and his judgment is sincere and invaluable. He has been with them since, through the titles of 2010-2013 and the years of Mercedes domination. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.Ī short spell with the ill-fated Midland followed in 2005 at the end of which Red Bull headhunted him for their then nascent outfit. For more information see our Privacy Policy.
Privacy Notice: Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. There is a sense that anything but a straightforward, honest consideration would sit uncomfortably with a man who has had a long career against which to measure Red Bull’s current performance. Hugely respected in the paddock, Pedals is no spin doctor, no team principal playing the game. We are not in-fighting, the gears are in mesh.” The fact that the team have levels of trust and belief in all the individual departments, that those group efforts will merge together to make a bloody good car, is indicative of a very healthy team. “If there is an assumption that this is an easy car to operate, it is anything but. “Because getting the most out of this car each weekend requires a lot of effort from a lot of very clever people. “Without wanting to sound flippant, dismissive or arrogant, it’s not been easy for us,” he says. He does not often speak to the media but, sitting in the Red Bull motorhome, is entirely comfortable when asked to assess why they are in such rare form. One can see why he has proven to be such a successful people-person in the intensely cooperative atmosphere of an F1 team. Pedals is softly spoken and thoughtful, with an endearing, self-deprecating wit.
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He oversees the race engineers who work closely with the drivers to ensure the cars are at their best on every track, a task Red Bull have achieved with overwhelming success this season. On a race weekend he is instrumental as chief engineer, a calm and phlegmatic troubleshooter dealing with the intensity and pressure of adapting to key moments as the weekend develops. The 55-year-old is calm professionalism personified albeit under the light-hearted nickname by which he is universally known in the paddock: “Pedals”. Monaghan might well epitomise why Red Bull have been so successful this season in taking their two titles from 2022 and turning them into an all-conquering behemoth. There won’t be a let up because we keep pushing ourselves.” But our personal motivation, pride and dedication would not let it happen. It wouldn’t take the others long to catch us. “If we were to back off now I would not say the 2023 championship is a done deal. Paul Monaghan’s title might be rather clunky as “chief engineer, car engineering” but his mind is razor sharp and he is adamant the team have no intention of letting their lead slip away.
Key to their effort but largely unrecognised is a man who has spent more than 30 years in F1 and has been with Red Bull since 2006, an integral part of maximising their performance, especially over a race weekend.
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