It’s no secret that Red Bull’s 2023 challenger, the RB19, is one of the fastest cars on the grid. During pre-season testing in Bahrain, they found hardly any reliability or performance issues, so Red Bull team principal Christian Horner is very happy with the car.
During the team principals’ press conference, Horner explained that he is proud of how the team reduced the weight of the car to make it faster. He added that his 2022 car was 10kg overweight during some race weekends. Now, however, it is much lighter.
Horner also said that it was quite difficult for Red Bull to develop its 2023 challenger due to several minor regulation changes implemented over the winter. He elaborated:
“I think the weight loss he’s had is impressive. At times last year we were up to 10kg overweight. So I think the whole team has done a great job to push it to the limit. But Formula 1 is constant”. evolution. He is constantly refining and developing all the elements. Look, the RB18 was a great car, but obviously the regulation changes over the winter, the revision of the aero rules, it throws up some corners.”
When asked how the Red Bull drivers felt about the car, Horner replied that both Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez are happy with the balance and performance. He also talked about how track characteristics changed over the course of a few days, forcing teams to make smaller changes to their car setup. Horner said:
“The drivers’ feedback, they both came out of the car after their testing period happy with the balance they had. So, you know, the circuit has changed a bit in the last few days, since we were here last, in terms of of driving characteristics that just need to be adapted to the conditions of the day. We have more and different cars running and things like that now, so that’s what they’re integrated into now, with their engineers working in Tuning.”
The first race of the 2023 season begins in Bahrain on Sunday (March 5).
Sergio Pérez says he feels more comfortable with the Red Bull RB19
Sergio Perez recently spoke about how he feels much more comfortable in Red Bull’s RB19 as it is more stable than last year’s car.
Speaking ahead of the Bahrain GP, he discussed the car’s stability, also adding that upcoming Red Bull development packages might not be as strong as others, having had less time for wind tunnel testing. The Mexican said:
“We definitely improved stability. I think it’s been positive, where I feel more comfortable with the car. And then it’s just Bahrain; it’s a very unique track, the tarmac here, (etc), but we have a good base.” We are very constrained, with our time in the wind tunnel, so we need to make sure as a team that whatever we bring to the table, whatever direction we push development in, is the right one.”
Great job all week by @redbullracing in Bahrain. We managed to complete the entire preseason program without major problems. We are ready and waiting for the star of the season 💪 https://t.co/wngM2kQdgK
Perez will be hoping for better results this season after failing to finish in the top two in 2022.