The KTM attracted a lot of attention in the Valencia tests with its black and white camouflage livery which was created directly in Milton Keynes at the Red Bull aerodynamic headquarters. The world champion F1 team, especially at the beginning of the hybrid era of power units, had accustomed enthusiasts to launch the new single-seater in winter tests with a color adequately designed to hide the actual lines designed by Adrian Newey.
The Austrian manufacturer followed the same principle according to which the RC 16 that was taken to the track yesterday on the circuit dedicated to Ricardo Torno was in a black-white version with the new aerodynamic parts that dressed the bike after the last world championship event in Valencia .
Photo by: Dorna
Brad Binder, Red Bull KTM Factory Racing
The most impactful aspect is having seen an important change in the fairing: don’t think that the step that characterized the previous model has disappeared, but we were simply able to observe a rise in the bodywork at the trailing edge thanks to which a real channel into which to direct the flow with losses, the result of the hot air that is expelled from the radiators. There is an attempt to differentiate the air passages, according to a culture that is typical of the Red Bull brand, without having a frontal section that is too wide which would penalize the maximum speed. And despite the geometric games aimed at confusing the lines, the desire to make the fairing more synergistic with the redesigned fins is not lost on us: KTM does not follow the trend started by Honda which tried to move the center of pressure more towards the rear.
![Here is the KTM in the Valencia tests with the revised hull keel](https://cdn-3.motorsport.com/images/mgl/6b7BKjE0/s1000/red-bull-ktm-factory-racing-fa.jpg)
Photo by: Gold and Goose / Motorsport Images
Here is the KTM in the Valencia tests with the revised hull keel
The hull is also interesting in the keel: beyond the U-shaped conveyor that we have already seen and which must feed that channel which is delimited by the conspicuous “rib” which makes the keel convex towards the outside. The feeling is that additional aerodynamic load is being sought to give further stability to the bike, limiting one of the big defects of the 2023 season which was excessive tire wear.
Another aspect not to be overlooked is the modularity of the parts of the entire bodywork: in this experimental phase it is possible to intervene and make changes to the portions of the fairing that are of interest, speeding up the development phase in view of the homologation of the aero kit in sight of the 2024 season.
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