Newey promises an astonishing Red Bull for 2012

In 2009, the Red Bull team had been, in the shadow of Brawn Grand Prix and its double diffuser, the revelation. The 2010 season was marked by confirmation before 2011 became the year of Red Bull’s domination. Many, therefore, fear that the Austrian team will continue its momentum in 2012, buoyed by a confidence that seems unshakable today, both among the drivers and the technical team.

After two seasons where they seemed unable to catch up with the Milton Keynes team, Red Bull’s rivals such as McLaren, Ferrari, and potentially Mercedes, have renewed their efforts and affirmed their intention to return in 2012 with projects that could challenge Red Bull’s dominance. Nicolas Tombazis, Chief Designer at Ferrari, has assured that the next Maranello model will be aggressive after the 150° Italia was unanimously judged as conservative, and the design team seems to have benefited from the valuable advice of Rory Byrne, one of the main architects of the Italian dominance in the early 2000s. At McLaren, which has recruited Sam Michael as sporting director, Martin Whitmarsh states that the Australian’s task will be to ensure that McLaren is the best and most feared team in the world, while at Mercedes, the arrival of Bob Bell at the start of the season and more recently Aldo Costa and Geoff Willis, clearly announces the ambitions of the star brand with its W03 for 2012.

But Adrian Newey, designer of the world champion RB6 and the RB7 which currently leads the constructors’ standings, does not intend to rest on his laurels and assures, according to Turun Sanomat, that the future RB8 will astonish everyone.

« When asked why she would be so surprising, he replied that if he revealed it, it would no longer be a surprise » reports Heikki Kulta, correspondent for the Finnish newspaper.

It seems, moreover, that within the team itself, the British engineer plays his cards close to his chest, as evidenced by the joke of Christian Horner, team principal of the Austrian team: « So far, he has only told me it would be blue. »

Helmut Marko also revealed on the Servus TV channel that the men from Milton Keynes would be evaluating a few new elements this weekend at Suzuka, similar to what Ferrari did in Singapore by testing a 2012 version front wing project. Red Bull’s goal, according to Dietrich Mateschitz’s eminence grise, is to return [in 2012] with a clear advantage for the first race of the season.

If that were the case, there is no doubt that this RB8 might make headlines, as the RB6 and RB7 before it had to face controversies about their legality, a situation that amuses Christian Horner somewhat: « We take it as a compliment. […] We’ve shown that what we have accomplished owes nothing to luck. […] Ferrari and McLaren have been sworn enemies for twenty years, until they united against us. »