Last year, Red Bull unveiled the RB17 hypercar, a track beast based on Formula 1 technology. Adrian Newey, then still technical director at the Austrian racing team, designed this exclusive vehicle to fill the gap in the Red Bull lineage; after all, due to the coronavirus pandemic, there was never an RB17 Formula 1 car. According to top engineer Rob Gray, anyone who manages to get hold of one of the fifty examples could drive faster than a Formula 1 car.
During the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, Red Bull recorded a podcast with former driver David Coulthard and top engineer Rob Gray. Gray played a key role in the development of the RB17, the first hypercar from the bull stable. Together with master designer Adrian Newey, he was allowed to create the ultimate racing monster without restrictions, entirely based on Formula 1 technology. According to the simulations, the RB17 would even be faster than Max Verstappen in a qualifying round.
Extremes
“I wonder to what extent the car – based on the simulations – comes close to a Formula 1 car?” David Coulthard asked his Red Bull colleague. “I don’t dare to say too much about that – if I make statements about it now, they could still haunt me later,” Gray responded with a laugh. “But in the virtual world, the RB17 is currently faster than a Formula 1 car. During simulations at Spa-Francorchamps, we clocked a time of 1 minute and 38 seconds. So yes, that’s incredibly fast.” For comparison, Lando Norris took pole position at Spa this year with a time of 1:40.562.
The RB17, too extreme for public roads and therefore exclusively unleashed on the racetrack, boasts an impressive list of technical features. This beast is powered by a naturally aspirated 5.4-liter V10 engine from Cosworth. The engine only hits red at 15,000 revolutions per minute, sounding like a Formula 1 car from the Schumacher era. Power is abundant – the engine sends a whopping 1000 horsepower to the rear wheels. In addition, the RB17 is equipped with a hybrid system that adds another 200 horsepower. With a dry weight of less than 900 kilograms, it naturally results in dizzying lap times.
