RB F1 kicked off a promising new chapter with Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo testing the VCARB 01. CEO Peter Bayer lauds the team’s effort and the smooth start to their ambitious program.
RB F1 has finally embarked on its new chapter with the initial day of testing yesterday, during which Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo took turns behind the wheel of the VCARB 01. Peter Bayer, the team’s CEO, expressed satisfaction in launching this brand-new program.
“It was a vigorous effort; the preseason was intense, and being here on the track is what we’ve all been anticipating. The first day went well, we went out, and there were no issues, the team did an incredible job,” Bayer observed.
“Daniel and Yuki felt comfortable in the car and reported no significant issues. But it’s still the beginning, we’re gathering data, analyzing the car’s behavior, and so far, so good.”
RB F1 Bolsters Team with Big Signings
This winter, RB F1 announced the signing of several big names, including Tim Goss and Alan Permane, and Bayer revealed that these were made possible through massive investments. He disclosed that more signings are expected at the Faenza-based team.
“We received tremendous support from the shareholders to push the team forward, and we are pleased to have an F1 team that stands on its own two feet. We have people who have joined, you’ve mentioned names, and there are more coming, there are surprises in store.”
“The ambition, the arrival of Laurent [Mekies, the director] was a great help, for him to focus on the technical and team management aspects, and for me to concentrate on the commercial side, we work very well together and are very happy to be here.”
Bayer recounted the team’s busy winter: “It’s a big process to get everything done, there’s a lot of legal work. Changing the team’s name, signing all the contracts, ordering the team’s uniforms, these are the little things that need to be considered. And being here in Bahrain seems perfect.”
The team “understood the car better” in 2023
Bayer explains how AlphaTauri tried to make a comeback to the front last year, and why recruitment was necessary: “Last year, we pushed to the maximum, brought developments to every race to better understand the car and its concept, and on the eve of Abu Dhabi, we introduced the second floor.”
“In F1, there’s no cushion; we added people, restructured the team, and we want to ensure everyone finds their place, that procedures are refined, and that everything goes smoothly.”
“In terms of technical development, we realized last year that we finally understood the car better. And we want to continue to understand its behavior today. Yesterday, Yuki and Daniel mentioned there was potential, and there’s tuning work to focus on to be ready for next week.”
He anticipates another tightly contested season in the midfield this year: “We briefly talked about Abu Dhabi last year; if you look at the times, there were about 10 or 15 cars within three to four tenths. So, it will all come down to the details, no one can afford to make mistakes, and the drivers need to perform.”
“To quote Franz, they must step on the right foot! But having experienced drivers helps; we get a lot of feedback about the car. With a young driver, communication mostly goes from the team to the driver, whereas with an experienced driver, it’s from the driver to the team, so we can gather a lot of information, and we had a good debriefing.”
RB F1’s New Chapter Begins with Successful Testing. RB F1’s New Chapter Begins with Successful Testing
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