Marko reveals: 'RB18 is still over 10 kilograms too heavy'

Red Bull Racing's RB18 is still far too heavy. Helmut Marko states that the car of Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen is heavier than that of Ferrari and is at least 10 kilograms above the lower limit set by the FIA. So there is still a lot of work to be done.

Overweight in Formula 1

For 2022, all Formula 1 teams had to design new cars based on new regulations. With a budget cap, teams had to make the right trade-offs, and weight also plays an important role in this. In general, a lighter part simply costs more money.

It is therefore not surprising that teams tried to raise the lower limit of 795kg. This succeeded somewhat, but with a maximum weight of 798kg a lot of teams are still not helped. Alfa Romeo is reportedly the only one close to the lower limit, but many other teams are several kilos above it.

Red Bull is the team that is perhaps furthest from the lower limit. This was already clear prior to the season and has been stated by the team several times throughout the season. However, Red Bull does not want to come up with new, lighter parts first, but wants to merge this with updates. If there are updates, they will also directly make the car lighter.

The RB18 is going to drop out

Marko already revealed to ORF that updates are planned for the Grand Prix in Imola, but the team hopes to get closer to the lower limit with the weight in the next two to three races as well. According to Marko, the team still has three to four tenths to gain with the weight difference. According to Marko this equals more than 10 kilograms.

"We are hopeful that the updates in Imola will provide some weight loss," Marko also said about this at German RTL. "It doesn't just happen (losing weight), it's a long-term process. We have a lot of excess weight, at least much more than Ferrari. If we come close to Ferrari in Barcelona then we will already be satisfied, to be honest," concluded the Austrian.