Red Bull presents its 2021 Formula 1 car
Red Bull has revealed the first images of its 2021 Formula 1 car, the RB16B.
Photo by: Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Red Bull Racing
The Milton Keynes-based outfit showed off the Honda-powered challenger on Tuesday morning, becoming the fourth team to unveil its new car.
The RB16B is an evolution of the 2020 RB16, with team boss Christian Horner explaining at the end of last year that there would be a carryover of around 60 percent of the 2021 challenger.
The team hopes, however, that the lessons it learned from last season, when drivers Max Verstappen and Alex Albon struggled at times with a tricky balance, have been taken on board and it can prove to be stronger against Mercedes. It has targeted making the RB16B more consistent across different types of tracks.
Red Bull's hopes of being able to fight harder against Mercedes will also rest on the work that engine supplier Honda has done with its new F1 engine, ahead of the Japanese manufacturer's last season in the sport.
Horner said that Red Bull was well aware of where it needed to improve, and that progress on both the chassis and engine front would prove beneficial.
"I wouldn't say the [problems] were exclusive to aero," he said about the difficulties of last year. "These things always work in tandem. But I think that we made good progress through 2020 and we'll see whether RB16B has its challenges from the regulation changes, but that's obviously the same for all teams.
"Hopefully, with a lot of good lessons that we learned last year, we'll manage to apply those into the updated car."
Red Bull is heading in to 2021 with a new driver line-up, after Albon was demoted to the role of reserve and test driver at the end of last season.
That came with Red Bull electing to sign Sergio Perez as Verstappen's teammate, off the back of an impressive campaign that the Mexican delivered for Racing Point in 2020.
Red Bull thinks that the addition of Perez will be vital if it is to disrupt Mercedes and prevent the German car manufacturer from taking an eighth consecutive F1 title double.
Honda's final season in F1 this year will be followed by Red Bull taking over the engine project itself and running the power units from 2022 under its own name.
Work is already underway at Red Bull's Milton Keynes campus to ramp up its powertrain facilities in readiness for the new challenge.
How Albon plans to fight his way out of Red Bull limbo
What Red Bull is trying to hide with its RB16B launch
ADAC reveals 2023 DTM plans after takeover
The ADAC has revealed how it plans to run the DTM in 2023 after taking over the running of the championship from previous owner ITR.
FIA formally outlaws Mercedes slot-gap separator trick
The FIA has now formally banned a front wing trick that Mercedes considered this season before it was advised it could fall foul of Formula 1’s regulations.
Bolukbasi weighing up F2 and Super Formula for 2023
Cem Bolukbasi says he is weighing up offers from both Formula 2 and Super Formula for the 2023 season, after his unexpected call-up to this week’s Suzuka test.
Motorsport.tv guide: What's on 10-11 December weekend?
The final race of the season in Stock Car Brasil will take place at Interlagos this weekend, while the much-anticipated SuperEnduro kicks off the new season in Poland, an event only available to Premium subscribers. An endurance classic, the Gulf 12 Hours, also returns to Motorsport.tv, live and free from Abu Dhabi.
The bold F1 DRS experiment that could end the debate forever
OPINION: The effectiveness of DRS in Formula 1 remains a topic of debate as the winter break gives a chance for reflection on the racing we saw in 2022. For all of its detractors, perhaps an experiment where DRS is cast aside and the impact this has on racing is in order to truly understand its merits in modern F1.
The sliding doors moment that saved Red Bull and Porsche
OPINION: Everything looked set for Red Bull and Porsche to join forces for the 2026 season, before the marriage between both parties was called off. While at the time it looked like a major coup for Formula 1 in gaining both VW Group powerhouses Audi and Porsche for 2026, Red Bull and Porsche have really been spared a potentially fractious relationship.
How Tyrrell’s post-Stewart era descended into a fight to survive
Glory days for Tyrrell became increasingly infrequent after Jackie Stewart’s retirement. But in the latest instalment of his history of the team for Autosport's sister title GP Racing, MAURICE HAMILTON recalls how Ken Tyrrell’s plucky and defiantly small team stayed bold enough to innovate – springing a surprise with F1’s first six-wheeled car
How departing F1 boss Brawn views F1’s new rules - and the future
Multiple-title-winning designer and team boss Ross Brawn is finally leaving Formula 1 after nearly 50 years in motorsport. But he still has plenty of insights on what’s working and what comes next, as he revealed to Motorsport.com in a far-reaching exclusive interview in Abu Dhabi.
The key F1 management call Ferrari must make to avoid more defeat
OPINION: Mattia Binotto’s departure from Ferrari will naturally bring a range of changes across the Formula 1 team. But how the changes shape up and the impact they could have is set to be dictated by a key direction Ferrari’s top dogs will need to pick
The difference between Mercedes’ stumble and the fall of F1 giants
OPINION: Mercedes endured its worst season of the hybrid Formula 1 era, but was mercifully spared its first winless campaign in over a decade late on. It has owned up to the mistakes it made which led to its troubled W13. And while its task to return to title-challenging contention is not small, its 2022 season seems more like a blip than the beginning of a downward spiral.
The physical focus bringing out the best from Esteban Ocon
Esteban Ocon likes to point out he’s the first driver since Lewis Hamilton to emerge from a spell as Fernando Alonso’s teammate with a superior overall points record. While some may disagree, as LUKE SMITH discovered, the 2021 Hungarian GP winner reckons it’s not just luck which has made him France’s pre-eminent Formula 1 driver of the moment…
How Red Bull's dynamic leader Mateschitz shaped its F1 philosophy
The death of Dietrich Mateschitz last month has not only deprived Red Bull of its visionary founder, it has shorn Formula 1 of one of its most influential benefactors. Mateschitz himself was famously media-shy, preferring to let the brand do the talking on his behalf. And, while it’s now normal to speak of Red Bull F1 titles and champions made, Mateschitz never assumed it would be easy or even possible – as ANTHONY ROWLINSON discovered during this previously unpublished interview from 2006…