SUMMARY
- Red Bull contemplates renaming their 2024 car DM01 instead of the anticipated RB20.
- Despite RB19's success, Red Bull anticipates fierce competition from rivals Ferrari and Mercedes.
While the rest of the grid is gearing up to run side-to-side with Red Bull, the latter seems to be ready to be on top in the upcoming season. At the forefront of Formula 1, the Austrian team has earned remarkable success within the current regulations. Despite having a little less than a month at hand, Red Bull could choose to make a massive transformation with their 2024 challenger.
The team’s initial plan was to name their latest car RB20. However, recent revelations suggest a poignant change to DM01, paying tribute to their late owner, Dietrich Mateschitz, who passed away in October 2022. Mateschitz was a key player in the team who had little visibility at Formula 1 events but had an important influence.
Is Red Bull planning a reversal of nomenclature in 2024?
A deleted tweet from Speedweek, associated with the Milton Keynes-based team, indicated the potential renaming of RB20 to DM01 in honor of Mateschitz. The unexpected shift suggests that the reigning champions might not use the expected RB20 name for the 2024 F1 season. This decision aligns will probably be the result of the lasting impact Mateschitz left on the team.
🏎️ | RB20 may have a different name to pay tribute to Dietrich Mateschitz?
According to a deleted tweet made by Mathias Brunner, a journalist working for Speedweek which is affiliated to Red Bull, the RB20 will be named DM01 after the team’s late founder Dietrich Mateschitz.
A… pic.twitter.com/WE0U14khw7
— RBR News 🇳🇱🇲🇽 (@redbulletin) January 16, 2024
Upholding the supremacy of the RB19, Red Bull is still the clear favorite to light up the 2024 season, even with this moniker switch. Considering two seasons under the existing regulations, the team is not expecting a challenge-free campaign. Rivals, particularly Ferrari and Mercedes, are intensifying their competition.
Red Bull is also facing internal struggles with Sergio Perez’s contract expiration. While Max Verstappen established his status as a long-running champion like Lewis Hamilton or Michael Schumacher, the Mexican failed to impress the management.
RBR unveiled the RB20 launch date
The 2023 champions are planning to reveal their 2024 challenger just a couple of hours after Valentines Day on February 15. This is the seventh team that announced their launch program after Mercedes’s W15 release the night before. Nevertheless, the RB20 faces a tough task to live up to the expectations after the beast of a machinery, RB19 had set the bar high.
🚨 | OFFICIAL: Red Bull Racing will launch the RB20 on 15th February 2024.pic.twitter.com/v73JB8w7TH#F1 #Redbull pic.twitter.com/tKsF3FIEE3
— Desi Racing Co. (@DesiRacingco) January 15, 2024
In the latest string of seven confirmed launch dates by teams, the car’s announcement arrives ahead of the pre-season testing in Bahrain. Just a few competitors remain secretive about their plans as of January 17. This includes teams such as Haas and AlphaTauri while McLaren surprisingly shared their livery on the 16th.
While speaking to the media, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner shared, “I don’t think we’ll ever be able to repeat the season that we’ve had, but hopefully, we can take the lessons from RB19 and apply them to [RB]20 and come up with a car that we can defend these titles with.” The Austrian outfit took home the world championship titles and 860 points after winning 21 of the 22 races.