Red Bull goes back to bold blue with RB22 as F1’s next era looms
Red Bull has rolled the clock back to its very first season with a new coat of paint for the future. In a joint Detroit launch with sister team Racing Bulls, the team unveiled a glossy, punchier blue RB22 livery that nods to 2005 and gently retires the now-familiar matte navy.
If the color shift felt fan-led, it wasn’t. Max Verstappen’s been lobbying for it. “I’ve been asking for this for a while,” he said at the reveal, clearly pleased with the shiny, deeper tone and the more defined Red Bull branding. “I like the shine. I like the blue. It feels fresher.”
Fresh is the operative word. The RB22 may be Red Bull’s first machine for Formula 1’s new rulebook, but it also marks the debut of Red Bull Powertrains’ in-house hybrid unit, developed with Ford. New power, new proportions, new aero philosophy; the reset is sweeping. The cars arriving for the coming campaign are set to be smaller and lighter, aimed at making racing more nimble and less draggy. And yes, they’ll sound different too.
Verstappen, who’s seen enough regulation swings to know the drill, sounded measured about early expectations. The car’s dimensions, he noted, will ask drivers to rewire a few instincts. “It’s a big change with the engine and the car,” he said. “We’ll need a bit of time to adjust, so the laps in testing are going to be really important to optimize everything.”
Before the public gets a proper look at lap times, teams will shake down their new challengers away from prying eyes, with a behind-closed-doors running scheduled for January 26 at Barcelona. Expect quiet confidence from Milton Keynes between now and then; Red Bull’s race team hasn’t forgotten how to execute, and having its own power unit program finally hit the track is a milestone years in the making.
The livery itself will divide as all liveries do, but it’s hard to miss the intent. This isn’t a special one-off or a seasonal flourish; it’s a statement. The gloss lifts the colors under bright light. The logo outline pops. It’s cleaner, louder, and a touch nostalgic. Red Bull knows its identity better than most, and this feels like a deliberate blend of heritage and a new chapter.
The bigger question lives under the skin. How quickly Red Bull hits the performance window of the new regulations will determine whether the RB22’s striking look becomes an image of dominance or a marker of a tighter, more volatile fight. The team has set a high bar for integration between chassis and power unit, and it won’t be alone—everyone’s starting a new game, even if some have better playbooks.
For now, the mood is upbeat rather than chest-thumping. Verstappen’s appetite for novelty—especially when it comes in a shade of blue he chose—is obvious. The launch in Detroit, paired with Racing Bulls, carried a touch of showmanship and a hint that Red Bull’s broader brand machine is as slick as ever.
The laps will tell the truth soon enough. Until then, the RB22’s first win is cosmetic: a striking, confident redesign that can’t be mistaken for anything else on the grid. New look, new engine, new rules. Same target.
