Red Bull Announces RB21 Track Debut Date Ahead Of Pre-Season Testing

Saajan Jogia | Jan 31, 2025

May 4, 2024; Miami Gardens, Florida, USA; Red Bull Racing driver Max Verstappen (1) car sits in the paddock before the F1 Sprint Race at Miami International Autodrome. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-Imagn Images / John David Mercer-Imagn Images

Red Bull has scheduled the track debut of its RB21 Formula 1 car for Tuesday, 25 February, with Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson set to drive during a filming day in Bahrain. This is scheduled just a day before the official three-day pre-season test from 26-28 February at the Bahrain International Circuit.

The launch of the RB21 will happen as per schedule on 18 February during the F1-75 event at the London O2 Arena, where all F1 teams will reveal the liveries of their 2025 challengers. The event is being hosted by the sport to celebrate its storied history of 75 years.

Motorsport.com reports that Red Bull will be making use of the updated regulations that allow teams to run their cars for 200 kilometers on Pirelli demonstration tires. Red Bull performed its filming day on a wet Silverstone circuit last year.

The 2024 season saw Red Bull endure various challenges, internally and on the race track. However, the team fought back and helped Max Verstappen secure his fourth championship. But due to the RB20 F1 car's balance problems, Red Bull lost the top two spots in the Constructors' Championship to McLaren and Ferrari, in the same order.

With competition anticipated to be a lot more intense this year, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner revealed his views at the Autosport Awards when receiving the award on behalf of Verstappen, who was voted the International Racing Driver of the Year. He said:

"I think it's going to be super tight. You're going to have four teams that are going to be very competitive, so take your pick.

"But McLaren are going to be strong. Ferrari are going to be strong. Mercedes are going to have something to prove as well. So, it could be a stellar year."

Horner acknowledged that the RB21 will be the team's first car without the inputs of its former chief technical officer, Adrian Newey, who joins Aston Martin in March. Newey has been known for designing Red Bull's dominant title contenders in the current ground effect era, with the most popular one being the RB19 from 2023 that helped Red Bull secure 21 out of 22 Grand Prix victories. Expressing the faith he has in his team to perform a top job without Newey, Horner said:

“This is the first time that Adrian [Newey] will have had absolutely no input into the car.

“That’s for the team to step up to that challenge.

“I’m confident they can do that. They've got strength and depth and we’ll see what the RB21 looks like."