The first images of Red Bull’s new RB20 car appeared on social networks after its appearance on the track in Silverstone.
The Milton Keynes-based team are officially unveiling their 2024 car at an event at their factory on 15/02, and had hoped to keep the design under wraps until then.
But despite world champion Max Verstappen’s first laps in the car being a strictly behind-closed-doors event, a video shot by a spectator – most likely from a hotel opposite the Silverstone pits – offered the first glimpse of Red Bull’s new car.
While the images aren’t high enough quality to show much detail about the changes Red Bull has made, they do show that the RB20 is very much an evolution of last year’s title-winning RB19.
There do seem to be some interesting areas of development though, including the full-length ducts that run down the bonnet and are similar to last year’s Mercedes.
In addition, the area around the front sidewalls appears to be a step change from last year and has been given a particularly aggressive trim to further boost airflow in a critical area of the car.
During the shake-up, it is understood that part of today’s drive was for a promotional race between the RB20 and its original 2005 RB1.
The RB20 driven at Silverstone is believed to be just the initial specification of the car, as Red Bull are known to refrain from revealing too much about their final race spec before it is necessary.
That could mean making a number of changes for either next week’s pre-season test in Bahrain or the season opener at the Sakhir circuit, which could make it look very different.
Red Bull technical director Adrian Newey recently said the team decided to stick with its basic car concept for the third year in a row because it has already proven successful in the new era of ground effect.
