Red Bull’s Chief Technical Officer, Adrian Newey, says the new RB9 is largely an evolution of its predecessor, with the team opting to carry over a significant proportion of its double title-winning RB8 chassis for the 2013 Formula 1 campaign.
With the regulations entering a transitional phase ahead of a major overhaul next year, Newey believes that instead of any groundbreaking design features, Pirelli’s new tyres will mark the biggest change up and down the pit lane this season.
"(The) RB9 is an evolutionary car," said Newey. "Probably the most significant change is not the regulations, but the new Pirelli tyres. We had a quick test with those in practice ahead of the Brazilian Grand Prix but in truth we didn’t learn a lot because of the conditions. Pirelli have supplied us data about how the tyres behave but past experience tells us that it’s only when we go testing that we really find out."
Newey also admitted that the balance between developing the RB8 and shifting focus to the new car was difficult to manage, but he is pleased to see the risk pay off.
"It was difficult trying to continue development of last year’s car while also doing research into the RB9," he added of the car's development. "Obviously it worked for us, but it gave us a very tight timeframe to design and manufacture this car."
Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel will again race for Red Bull in 2013, entering their fifth season as team-mates. The duo will split testing duties at Jerez next week.
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