Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has admitted that there are ‘always challenges’ in the process of designing an F1 car as he shed some light on the progress of the highly anticipated RB20.
As far as car design goes in the world of F1, the RB19 verged on perfection.
The 2023 model won all but one race in 2023, with Max Verstappen being responsible for 19 of the 22 victories last year.
The pressure is naturally on Red Bull to repeat the same feat in 2024 as they prepare to unveil their RB20 to the world, perhaps coincidentally, one day after Mercedes.
Horner: Challenges natural in F1 car design
And although fully aware that the team will only know how good a job they have done when the car hits the track in Bahrain, Horner believes that Red Bull are taking things to the limit ahead of the 2024 season.
“I think as far as targets can be, yes,” he told PlanetF1 when asked if the RB20 was on track to hit the team’s targets.
“We don’t have a lot of pre-season testing these days, we’ve got a lot to focus on and to get done, but it’s always a busy time of year in the factory in the planning stage for the season ahead.”
“There are always challenges along the way,” he said on the subject of any hiccups behind the scenes. “But if you’re not on the limit, you’re not trying hard enough.”
“Hopefully, we’re making progress,” he added. “But the stopwatch never lies and we’ll only see when we get to the track.”
Further Reading:
McLaren F1 star makes ‘enough controversy’ admission after chaotic 2023 season
McLaren F1 star Oscar Piastri has insisted that he wants his driving to do the talking after he admitted that he ‘had enough controversy’ coming into the sport.
It was one of the most bizarre moments in Formula 1’s recent history when Alpine announced to the world that Piastri would be racing for them in 2023 – only for the Australian to then refute that claim.
The 22-year-old had agreed a deal with McLaren and after the ruling of the Contract Recognition Board, Piastri got the nod to join Lando Norris for his debut season in F1.
A move that although began with its challenges, would eventually pay off in spades for the newly crowned F1 rookie of the year.
And the McLaren youngster has now opened up about his first year in F1, dismissing any notion that he has come across as guarded in interviews – pointing to his rocky introduction to the sport as reason for perhaps keeping his cards close to his chest.
Piastri: Alpine F1 controversy was enough
“There’s been some difficult sessions, some difficult races,” he told Autosport.
“But, and I think this also comes across in my radio, there’s no point getting upset or emotional about things you can’t control.
“It’s much better to try and fix things that you can control than just get upset about them. So, that’s always been my way of trying to tackle these things and just trying to keep a clear mind.”
“I’m very new to the sport and especially in the first half of the year, I feel like I had enough controversy and headlines on my way into F1,” he added.
“I certainly wasn’t in a rush to cause any anymore and I kind of just try and let my driving do the talking.”
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