Red Bull has developed yet another monstrous machine in 2023. The RB19 has so far taken both poles in the two races and finished 1-2 in both races. The car seems way faster and better than any other car on the grid.
This level of dominance has gotten competitors worrying about their seasons. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc claims the Milton Keynes team is on another planet this year. While Mercedes’s George Russell claims the team has sewn up the championship again.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton claims he has to date never seen such a fast car as the RB19. This remark has drawn attention towards Adrian Newey, who has masterminded Red Bull’s best car to date.
Hamilton believes the Red Bull RB19 is the most dominant F1 car he has seen in his career 👀
Do you agree with him? 💬#SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/Hrz7jyHonz
— Motorsport.com (@Motorsport) March 20, 2023
While Newey claims the car’s performance comes due to the right balance between Suspension and Ground clearance, some believe he is just sharing a low-hanging fruit. Mainly to divert attention from secrets the car has been hiding.
Red Bull has built a fantastic car, says De La Rosa
Pedro De La Rosa agrees with the heaping appraisal of the Red Bull RB19. The Aston Martin ambassador credits the team for building a fantastic car. He says the car is fast on straights and medium, low, and high-speed corners.
He added, “I find it quite interesting how much more competitive Red Bull is. I think this is not good. The gap appears to be good. While everyone was fighting for tyre management, the two red bull cars were fighting for the win.”
“That looked like F1 against F2.”
The difference in pace between Red Bull and Mercedes 😳 pic.twitter.com/mqO8e0s1qM
— ESPN F1 (@ESPNF1) March 19, 2023
The Spaniard says the car seems to have no weak points and better tire management. But this is remarkable progress considering Red Bull has been handed a major deficit in their wind tunnel and CFD testing.
This punishment came after the team was found guilty of a minor cost cap breach in 2022. But despite the setback, De La Rosa predicts RB19 will be indomitable for the rest of the season too
He added, “It’s true that we have more time than Red Bull. But halfway through the season, there is a revision in the number of hours based on the constructor’s standings. So the reality is that you don’t know about your competitor.”
Is Adrian Newey hiding something?
After the 2023 Bahrain GP, Red Bull Chief Technical Officer Newey made a bizarre comment. He claimed that he worked more on designing the car’s suspension than the Aerodynamics.
The Briton believes the ride height and suspension play a bigger role than aerodynamics. But Pedro De La Rosa thinks Newey is bluffing to protect bigger secrets.
Pedro commented, “Adrian has been telling me that you have to concentrate on the ride height and suspension for a long time. But when any technical director or someone with the knowledge of Adrian tells you that you need to focus on the suspension, you need to focus on the aerodynamics.”
Adrian Newey isn’t getting complacent 😤 pic.twitter.com/G5C6mQcAoM
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) March 16, 2023
The Spaniard added, “They are trying to divert the attention. Because their car is very good everywhere, It’s good on aero, efficiency, mechanical grip and downforce. But we can’t do anything apart from making sure they don’t disappear in the distance.”
The impressive thing is that the team has also designed a lighter chassis this year to save weight. And have made crucial changes in the ground effect of the car after FIA raised the minimum height requirements. It’s a testament to how well-prepared Red Bull was for the season despite their wind tunnel handicap.
