Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen closed with the third and fourth fastest times in Friday’s session, behind the Mercedes, reaffirming that the Red Bull have created a competitive car.
But the new regulations have brought new challenges and something that has been noticed in the first days of the new cars at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya is that they tend to generate the ‘porpoising’ effect at high speed.
This is one of the most discussed topics in the paddock, but it came as no surprise to the Milton Keynes team manager.
“With ground effect, the cars behave very differently. It’s a bit like the ’80s. For the designers it wasn’t something unexpected, it’s an interesting new dynamic,” said Christian Horner , the Red Bull team boss during the first days of preseason of the RB18
“So far so good. The car is behaving as expected and running as well as our simulations predicted. It’s an encouraging start,” he continued.
Red Bull battled Mercedes in 2021, eventually taking the title with Max Verstappen . Horner said it’s a great feeling to be able to put the race number 1 on the car. The Briton said the team had gained a lot of energy and confidence after winning last season: “Now it’s about keeping that number on the car,” he told Sky Sports .
The design of the single-seater created by Adrian Newey was not known until the Barcelona tests, because the team presented only one livery at its launch. The car caught the attention of Lewis Hamilton, who visited his rival team’s pit , something that Horner took with humor.
“I didn’t see him, but if he touched the car he can count on a big fine, as Max already knows,” joked the crew chief, who expects the fight between the two to continue. “Honestly, I hope so. That’s what everyone wants to see, Ferrari and McLaren look strong, not forgetting George Russell. He can play a big part in this championship.”
