- 09 Feb 09, 11:44#90228
Red Bull unveil the RB5 at Jerez
By Jonathan Noble Monday, February 9th 2009, 08:04 GMT
Red Bull Racing have become the latest team to unveil their 2009 car, with drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber pulling the covers off the RB5 at Jerez in Spain on Monday morning.
The Renault-powered machine is the latest design penned by Adrian Newey, and the team have high hopes that it will be the machine that allows the team to make a step forward this season.
Team principal Christian Horner has no doubts that the team's target is a victory this year - to follow in the footsteps of sister team Scuderia Toro Rosso who won at Monza in 2008.
"2009 will also see us benefit from greater stability in terms of how we run the operation, with all our key players in the technical group having been with us for at least two years," said Horner. "We should not forget they designed a car that won a grand prix in 2008, in the hands of Sebastian Vettel and Scuderia Toro Rosso.
"There is no reason to believe we cannot do that again with these new rules. The regulation changes almost constitute a new formula for the sport and it will be interesting to see how the teams interpret them.
"Certainly in the early part of this season we expect to see a much bigger spread in terms of performance between the teams than we have over the past two years. "
Horner also believed that a raft of cost-cutting measures introduced over the winter would play in to Red Bull Racing's hands.
"Going into 2009, the team is now well placed to take advantage of the rule changes, not just the technical ones that we have known about for some time, but also those established through the efforts of FIA and FOTA last December.
"Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology carried no excess weight anyway in terms of manpower, so adjusting to the new rules has, for us, been relatively straight-forward and we are in good shape for the future.
"The changes caused few interruptions to our workflow and they will also assist the larger manufacturer teams in cutting costs, in terms of manpower. Over the past year, we had invested strategically, and therefore, with the rules as they now stand, we are in a good position to capitalise on them, as they present an opportunity for teams to compete on a more level playing field."
The car features a higher and slimmer nose compares to other 2009 cars, and has incorporated bargeboards around the area of the sidepods - as some other teams have done.
As well as featuring Newey's interpretation of the new-for-2009 aerodynamic regulations, the car incorporates an improved Renault power unit - with the French car manufacturer having been allowed to make selected engine improvements over the close-season.
Vettel will be the first man to test the new car today, before Webber gets back in the cockpit on Wednesday for the first time since breaking his leg in a cycling accident at the end of last year.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73185
By Jonathan Noble Monday, February 9th 2009, 08:04 GMT
Red Bull Racing have become the latest team to unveil their 2009 car, with drivers Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber pulling the covers off the RB5 at Jerez in Spain on Monday morning.
The Renault-powered machine is the latest design penned by Adrian Newey, and the team have high hopes that it will be the machine that allows the team to make a step forward this season.
Team principal Christian Horner has no doubts that the team's target is a victory this year - to follow in the footsteps of sister team Scuderia Toro Rosso who won at Monza in 2008.
"2009 will also see us benefit from greater stability in terms of how we run the operation, with all our key players in the technical group having been with us for at least two years," said Horner. "We should not forget they designed a car that won a grand prix in 2008, in the hands of Sebastian Vettel and Scuderia Toro Rosso.
"There is no reason to believe we cannot do that again with these new rules. The regulation changes almost constitute a new formula for the sport and it will be interesting to see how the teams interpret them.
"Certainly in the early part of this season we expect to see a much bigger spread in terms of performance between the teams than we have over the past two years. "
Horner also believed that a raft of cost-cutting measures introduced over the winter would play in to Red Bull Racing's hands.
"Going into 2009, the team is now well placed to take advantage of the rule changes, not just the technical ones that we have known about for some time, but also those established through the efforts of FIA and FOTA last December.
"Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology carried no excess weight anyway in terms of manpower, so adjusting to the new rules has, for us, been relatively straight-forward and we are in good shape for the future.
"The changes caused few interruptions to our workflow and they will also assist the larger manufacturer teams in cutting costs, in terms of manpower. Over the past year, we had invested strategically, and therefore, with the rules as they now stand, we are in a good position to capitalise on them, as they present an opportunity for teams to compete on a more level playing field."
The car features a higher and slimmer nose compares to other 2009 cars, and has incorporated bargeboards around the area of the sidepods - as some other teams have done.
As well as featuring Newey's interpretation of the new-for-2009 aerodynamic regulations, the car incorporates an improved Renault power unit - with the French car manufacturer having been allowed to make selected engine improvements over the close-season.
Vettel will be the first man to test the new car today, before Webber gets back in the cockpit on Wednesday for the first time since breaking his leg in a cycling accident at the end of last year.
http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/73185
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