What you don't expect: while all the teams went on to copy concepts from the Red Bull RB19, Adrian Newey on the RB20 launched solutions that go in clear contrast to his previous choices, perhaps leaving chief designers disheartened who abandoned those very ones ideas that now characterize the new single-seater from Milton Keynes.
We would like to see what the reaction was of Mike Elliott, the Mercedes director kicked out after two cars with zero sidepods, or the surprise of Toto Wolff and Lewis Hamilton when they saw the radiator vents and the bazooka clearly inspired by Brackley's ideas.
Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Does anyone need Maalox for gastritis?
The Red Bull RB20 aerodynamically represents a clear departure from the single-seater with which Max Verstappen won his third world title in a row. Innovation also means knowing how to select the concepts seen on other cars (remember Newey moving back and forth on the starting grid of the GPs with the now legendary red notebook?) and demonstrating that they become successful on the Red Bull. This evening there will have been several people who took a Maalox against stomach acid after the evening presentation of the RB20.
There are three macro areas of the car that identify the most significant changes, but just take a closer look to discover that every detail of the single-seater has been taken to the extreme with the aim of going under the FIA ​​weight limit of 798 kg.
Red Bull Racing RB20
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Vertical radiator mouth, no tray
The most striking modification concerns the mouth of the radiators: one might have expected an almost closed intake seen in front section, as the Aston Martin dared to draw air from above, and, instead, Newey decided to mix it up the cards: the opening is high and narrow like on the celebrated Mercedes W13 and W14. The lower tray has disappeared to make way for an upper wing profile that supports the rear-view mirror. It is an element that connects to the actual belly and which can change shape during the season.
The side does not betray the Red Bull tradition: the undercut is exaggerated. The air flow towards the bottom has certainly increased and there is no longer any contamination between the flows of the upper profile and the lower ones. On the RB19 there was a stepped flare that is gone and the sidepod expresses a perfect wing shape. Newey, in chasing his adversaries, did not let himself be tempted to dig a tub, but kept the slope which was a lesson.
Red Bull Racing RB20
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
The ultimate bazooka, shoots… low
The central part of the machine is characterized by a long bazooka which is the extension towards the tail of the Halo attachments to the chassis. Also in this case the reference is to the Mercedes, even if the two lateral sausage-shaped “lungs” are decidedly higher than on the W14 and near the single pylon of the rear wing they curve drastically downwards, opening vents of the hot air which they should not dirty the efficiency of the double beam wing.
Airbox according to Honda tradition
The airbox has remained the well-known one of those who use the Honda power unit and the engine bonnet has the usual dimensions, a sign that the central radiator has remained, but it is interesting to note that between the engine cover and the bazooka there remains a passage air rather than coming from the passenger compartment and going towards the rear wing.
Seen from the side, the RB20 makes a certain impression because the bazooka has a side wall that descends straight to the bottom. More or less at a third of the height, behind the side slide, an air vent became more visible which was also there last year, but was more hidden. It could be an opening to control the temperature of the three-into-one exhausts.
Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Push rod in the rear suspension
The rear suspension has not changed: the layout remains push rod, while the kinematics have been updated to reflect the new aerodynamics. The rear wing has a main profile with a rather accentuated spoon suitable for a medium-high load track, while the movable flap is a long chord with a deep central V.
Long face or is it just a provocation?
The Red Bull RB20 is also capable of hitting the front: remember that before Christmas the car had failed the frontal crash test, destroying the first 2024 chassis and forcing the Milton Keynes team to move the presentation date to February 15th. Looking at the face it is reasonable to ask why in Milton Keynes they struggled to pass FIA approval: looking at it it looks like that of a dolphin with its nose jutting out onto the spoon of the first element. Here too Newey and Waché went against the current compared to Mercedes, Aston Martin and Ferrari, anchored at the first flap. It must be said that the nose reclines and becomes almost flat, but there are those who have doubts because it seems that there may be a cover on the unpainted part.
Red Bull Racing RB20
Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool
Front pull rod as a sign of continuity
The front suspension is pull rod: the known concepts have been taken to extremes. The front arm is almost cantilevered from the frame, while the rear one is lower than in 2023. A winning solution cannot be changed. Continuity was sought in the mechanics, because the Red Bull RB20 marks a clear break with the most recent aerodynamic shapes from Milton Keynes. Adrian Newey evidently doesn't just like winning. He wants to win big…
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