Red Bull F1 driver stunned by MotoGP legend in spectacular winter race

The event, known as the Red Bull Ultimate Winter Race, saw five competitors from different racing disciplines go head-to-head on a specially designed course in Eagle River, Wisconsin, with former Formula 1 driver Patrick Friesacher representing Red Bull Racing.

The Austrian took the wheel of the RB7, the car with which Sebastian Vettel claimed his second world championship in 2011, facing an unusual collection of opponents on a surface far removed from the circuits for which the car was designed.

MotoGP legend Dani Pedrosa competed aboard a KTM RC16, while former Toro Rosso driver and rallycross champion Scott Speed drove a Subaru WRX. Snowmobile racer Gunnar Sterne and off-road racing champion Andrew Carlson completed the five-strong field.

Rather than placing all five vehicles on an identical circuit, organisers designed different routes to account for their contrasting characteristics. The Formula 1 car and MotoGP bike benefited from shorter sections, while the snowmobile, naturally more suited to the conditions, had to negotiate a longer course.

The competitors also used specially adapted equipment to cope with the extreme cold. Pedrosa's KTM was fitted with studded tyres featuring 207 spikes at the front and 300 at the rear, alongside modifications to its suspension, brakes and engine mapping.

Despite the RB7's enormous performance advantage under normal racing conditions, Friesacher struggled to extract its potential on the frozen surface, where traction proved considerably more important than outright power.

Pedrosa, meanwhile, made the most of his motorcycle's relatively low weight and specially designed tyres to claim victory in the unusual contest. The Spaniard, who won 31 races during his MotoGP career, managed to stay ahead of his rivals and crossed the finish line first, leaving the Formula 1 car among the beaten competitors.

Friesacher admitted that controlling the Red Bull on ice had been particularly demanding, with the lack of grip making even relatively simple manoeuvres difficult.

The former Minardi driver, who made 11 Formula 1 starts during the 2005 season, also described the experience of competing against such different machinery as particularly memorable: "Everything about Ultimate Winter Race – from the unique course to getting to compete with these great drivers – was a special experience."

Pedrosa identified his strong start and careful choice of racing lines as the decisive factors behind his victory, particularly given the narrow corners and unpredictable grip levels.

Friesacher also revealed that the Formula 1 car struggled to get moving from a standstill, losing valuable ground while its rivals accelerated away: "It was really difficult to start in an F1 car because there was no traction. I was just spinning and saying ‘Come on, come on!’ because the others were going already and I was still at the start."

The Austrian eventually recovered ground once the car was moving, although an engine misfire on the final run added another complication.