Red Bull team principal Christian Horner expects the team's Formula One rivals to close the gap this season.

A superb start to their title defence has already seen Red Bull open a 58-point lead in the constructors' championship over closest competitors Aston Martin.

However, due to the "cultural change" within F1 in recent seasons, referencing the budget cap, Horner believes his team will be unable to maintain their advantage.

As defending champions, Red Bull were allocated the least time in the wind tunnel for this season, with their time reduced further by penalties issued by the FIA for breaching the cap in the 2021 season.

For that reason, Horner is predicting Red Bull's rivals will be hot on their heels later in the season.

"I think it will be very tough for us to develop this car, because when you look at the amount of percentage time less we have compared to some of our rivals, it's significant," he said, quoted on the F1 website.

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"But it is what it is. We just have to do the best we can with what we've got, be efficient, effective, and selective in what we choose to develop, and how we apportion our time.

"It's been a total cultural change over the last couple of years. It's a new challenge in Formula 1, how you apply your resources. It used to be a sprint in terms of developing a car as quickly as you could with whatever budget you can rustle up.

"Now it's a question of how and where do you apply your resources, and of course there are so many variables like crash damage, accident damage in there that can have a massive effect on your potential to develop. It's going to be interesting to see how it pans out this year."