A surprising reversal by the Milton Keynes team: the Austrian outfit had announced a special livery, but the difficult moment doesn’t allow for “distractions”
A truly unexpected decision at Red Bull. The team of Verstappen and Perez had announced a fan contest, where supporters could design the RB20’s livery for the Singapore and Austin GPs. However, the car will not sport the colors chosen by its fans due to the extra weight an additional coat of paint would bring.
Here is the official statement from Red Bull: “Unfortunately, when we reached the testing phase to see how some of the REBL CUSTMS designs might appear on the RB20 in real life, we discovered that the paint used to create these liveries added unforeseen and unjustified weight to the RB20’s bodywork.
As you can imagine, any additional weight compromises performance, and the Team continues to prioritize making this car as competitive as possible for the rest of the 2024 season. As a result, it is with a heavy heart that we must inform you that the Team has made the decision not to use the REBL CUSTMS liveries on the RB20 in the Singapore and Austin Grands Prix.”
The livery will still be used on the car of F1 Academy driver Hamda Al Qubaisi, who will race over the weekend with the Austrian team’s colors.
Photo: Oracle Red Bull Racing