While Formula 1 is recovering from the recent triple-header in Barcelona, Austria and Silverstone, the world-famous Goodwood Festival of Speed is taking place this weekend (July 11th to 14th) in the south of England. Red Bull used this opportunity to present its first, completely self-built hypercar to the world public.
To be more precise, Red Bull Racing CEO Christian Horner, Technical Officer Adrian Newey and Technical Director Rob Gray ceremoniously unveiled the RB17 on Friday in the ‘Catherdal Paddock’ at Goodwood. We have put together the spectacular pictures for you in a gallery. However, the RB17 has not yet been seen on the track, as the first test kilometers are not planned until 2025.
RB17 Hypercar: First real hypercar from Red Bull
“We are delighted to be launching the RB17 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. This has been one of the most authentic and exciting projects that Red Bull Advanced Technologies has undertaken to date,” said Horner on Friday. “As a performance-focused company and with 20 years of Formula 1 experience, it only made sense for us to develop our own hypercar from the ground up. With its combination of technical innovation, performance and emotional appeal, the RB17 is a groundbreaking car. I am very proud of the team and delighted that they are making their world debut. We expect the RB17 to be a future classic.”
The RB17 is the first real hypercar from Red Bull. The Red Bulls had previously designed the ‘Aston Martin Valkyrie’, but – as the name suggests – only in cooperation with Aston Martin. The RB17 is the first completely home-grown car. The hypercar comes with a V10 engine and puts over 1,000 hp on the road.
RB17 Hypercar: Adrian Newey’s last Red Bull
At the same time, the RB17 is the last Red Bull car developed by star engineer Adrian Newey. The 65-year-old Brit will leave the Red Bulls in 2024 after almost 20 years of predominantly successful collaboration. Rumors about a move to Aston Martin, Williams or Ferrari.
“I had been toying with the idea of taking on the challenge of designing my own hypercar for many years – from concept to delivery,” Newey said on Friday. He finally started working on the RB17 in winter 2020. “It’s been a great project and a great journey. That the day has finally come when we can drop the covers and see the birth of the RB17 is truly remarkable. The RB17 Hypercar embodies everything we stand for: undeniable power, speed and beauty. It is highly adaptable in its capabilities and we have taken care to design it as a two-seater so that you can also enjoy the thrill of driving at F1 speeds with a friend or partner.”
If you want to know why the hypercar is called ‘RB17’, you can find the explanation here: