How Red Bull’s 2022 F1 Challenger Goes Beyond the Hyped Sidepods

Red Bull will challenge for the 2022 season in the brand-new RB18. Max Verstappen will begin his Championship defense in Bahrain as the new regulations come into effect this season. Despite a major change with the sidepods, the RB18 has many changes ahead of the new season.

Red Bull has switched from a push-rod front and pull-rod rear to a pull-rod layout at the front and push-rod at the rear. The reason for this is the new venturi tunnels create higher downforce in the underfloor. A new wishbone layout features at the front of the new RB18. The forward upper arm is mounted higher at the intersecting point of the chassis.

The RB18 beam wing stands out as it doesn’t follow the shape used by most teams. The ‘dragonfly’ shaped wing will be a crucial change incorporated by the Bulls in 2022. Deeper interaction with the diffuser will help create better downforce in the underfloor of the car.

There is an addition of a narrow slot in the front face of the car under the red arrow. It is believed that it will aid the cooling of components during the race. Moreover, a small cylindrical cooler was seen to help cool the brakes, observed during pre-season testing.

With many changes to the RB18, fans expect a splendid performance after the car completed its first run in Barcelona.

Will Red Bull go for the gold?

Red Bull have been unable to claim the Constructors’ Championship since 2013. The team bounced back in 2021 rivaling Mercedes throughout the season. Verstappen, who won 10 races and poles in the season, will be looking to repeat the feat again in 2022.

However, the Mercedes dominance in the hybrid era has been staggering. No team has been able to match the Silver Arrows in the last decade. Moreover, the introduction of George Russell will make it harder for Red Bull in 2022. The youngster has been impressive since his F1 debut with Williams in 2019.

However, the season will be vital for the pairing of Verstappen and Sergio Perez. Perez will go into his second season with the team after a stellar debut season for the Bulls. With the Bahrain Grand Prix in 10 days, they will look to gather maximum data from the second round of testing this week.

Will fans see a resurgent Red Bull continue in 2022 or will there be a new name rivaling the big guns this year?

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