Over the years, something that would spark excitement for the upcoming season has become a source of huge disappointment for all fans as they have developed a love-hate relationship with this aspect of Formula 1. We are talking about the livery launches and we are right in the thick of things as teams are unveiling their cars for the 2024 season. However, if you’re a Red Bull and/or Max Verstappen fan, we suggest you lower your expectations, especially after the Dutchman’s recent confession.
As usual, Verstappen was engaged in some online gaming in his off time and he was streaming it as well. During this stream, the Dutchman was engaged in a casual conversation and he made a confession, which is the topic of our discussion today. While talking about the RB20 livery launch, which is set for 15th February, Verstappen gave an important insight.
“Oh yeah, it’s going to look exactly the same,” said Verstappen. Then a person on his stream, perhaps a teammate from his sim racing team, said, “Everyone else who’s already released the car doesn’t have any paint on their car.”
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Max Verstappen on the RB20 livery, which will be released on February 15:
“It’s going to look exactly the same [as the previous car].”#F1 pic.twitter.com/TvhAvp5KK9
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) February 7, 2024
After this statement, Verstappen reiterated, “Yeah, I tell you, it’s going to look exactly the same.” He then laughed at his own revelation. Red Bull has always liked to play it safe with the RB19 launch making it evident. As it turns out, this year won’t be any different.
Read More: Red Bull & Co. Ready to Flaunt Their 2023 Beasts As Exciting Launch Dates Get Finalized
The fans are set for yet another disappointing livery launch from the Austrian team. However, it will all be forgotten once the car hits the track and starts winning races. Perhaps another dominating season for the Max Verstappen and Co? Well, Christian Horner doesn’t think so.
Red Bull boss makes an honest confession about Max Verstappen’s chance of dominating in 2024
No one expects Verstappen to be as dominant in 2024 as he was in 2023. He won a record-breaking 86.35% of the races which amounts to 19 out of 22 races. With 2024 offering 24 races, we might see him as many races, much to the delight of the fans. However, no one expects the Dutchman to break his previous season’s win percentage record. Additionally, if there were any hopes, the boss has quashed them while giving his early predictions for the upcoming season.
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Horner said, “I’m fully expecting with stable regulations, [there’ll be] diminishing returns for us, because I think we got to the top of the curve quicker than others.”
Not just 2024, Horner believes we will not see a repeat of 2023 dominance for a long time. “I don’t think we’ll ever see a repeat, certainly not in our lifetimes, of what we managed to achieve [last] year with a car that’s managed the kind of dominance of RB19,” he added.
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Many would expect the RB20 to be better than its predecessor. Although perhaps apart from looking the same, we doubt the 2024 challenger will be able to produce the same level of dominance. However, we will have to wait and see how the car performs on the track and what Verstappen has to say about it.