The unveiling of the RB18 will take place next Wednesday, but the usually well-informed La Gazzetta dello Sport says it has managed to get its hands on the first details of the car with which Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez will have to go for the world championship in 2022.
Italy's biggest sports newspaper writes that the new car should be another Adrian Newey masterpiece. Red Bull's top designer is reported to have taken two steps to better conduct airflow.
Newey's plans
First, Newey moved the cockpit forward so he could make the sides at the back even tighter and longer. The shape of the new car should minimize turbulence at the front wheels with the goal of more downforce. It is expected that the RB18 will look completely different from the RB16B in terms of shape. Only the nose would remain similar.
For the second part of the plan, the help of Honda was enlisted. Newey wanted an even narrower rear end and for that he asked the Japanese company for an even more compact package than what was driven with last season. According to La Gazzetto dello Sport, Honda succeeded and moreover they have found a solution together with fuel supplier ExxonMobil to recover the horsepower lost with the introduction of the E10 fuel.
Launch of RB18 on 9 February
We will get to see the first contours of the RB18 on February 9. However, Red Bull will not want to give away all its technical gadgets to its competitors already and so it is expected that the Austrians will leave out the real details in the photos they will release.