No more “Camo-Bull” action for Formula 1
fans this year, as Red Bull decided to unveil its second Honda-powered race car
in its traditional colors, ahead of its first shakedown test at Silverstone
today. First to drive the RB16 will be Max Verstappen, who agreed to a new deal
with the team, keeping him in Red Bull colors until the end of 2023. Verstappen
will drive the car at Silverstone, while Albon will take over during pre-season
testing in Barcelona.
The car retains its
prominent Aston Martin branding, in what will be the latter’s final year with
Red Bull – Aston is set to take over naming duties for Racing Point for the
2021 Formula 1 season and beyond.
Visually, the RB16 looks pretty much
identical to the RB15. In fact, we really don’t see any differences other than
the nose tip, which now boasts what appear to be two hollow slits over top, for
airflow purposes, we assume. Red Bull also unveiled two new-look helmets for
its drivers, with Verstappen saying that his design is “a bit more fresher, and
with the halo this will stand out a bit more.” Meanwhile, Albon added that his
helmet is similar to last year’s, but with a few tweaks.
Red Bull became only the third team to
offer a glimpse at its 2020 car, following in the footsteps of Haas and
Ferrari. Mercedes on the other hand only debuted its 2020 livery earlier this
week.
