Red Bull RB12

Last updated
Red Bull RB12
Max Verstappen 2016 Malaysia FP2.jpg
The Red Bull RB12, driven by Max Verstappen, during the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix.
Category Formula One
Constructor Red Bull
Designer(s) Adrian Newey (Chief Technical Officer)
Rob Marshall (Chief Engineering Officer)
Steve Winstanley (Chief Engineer, Composites and Structures)
Dave Worner (Chief Engineer, Mechanics and Suspension)
Pierre Waché (Chief Engineer, Performance)
Dan Fallows (Chief Engineer, Aerodynamics)
Pete Machin (Chief Aerodynamicist)
Predecessor Red Bull RB11
Successor Red Bull RB13
Technical specifications
Chassis Composite monocoque structure, designed and built in-house, carrying the TAG Heuer Power Unit as fully stressed member.
Suspension (front)Aluminium alloy uprights, carbon fibre composite double wishbones with pushrods, springs, anti-roll bar and dampers
Suspension (rear)Same as front
Engine Mecachrome-built and assembled Renault R.E.16 (rebadged as TAG Heuer) 1.6 L (98 cu in) direct injection V6 turbocharged engine, limited to 15,000 rpm in a mid-mounted, rear-wheel drive layout
Electric motor Kinetic and thermal energy recovery systems
Transmission Sequential shift gearbox with eight forward and one reverse gears
BatteryLithium-ion batteries
Power900 hp [1]
FuelTotal
Brakes Brembo calipers Friction material; carbon/carbon composite discs and pads
Tyres Pirelli P Zero (dry) tyres
Pirelli Cinturato (wet) tyres
O.Z. RacingOZ Racing, Front: 12.0in x 13in diam., Rear: 13.7in x 13in diam.
Competition history
Notable entrants Red Bull Racing
Notable drivers3. Flag of Australia (converted).svg Daniel Ricciardo
26. Flag of Russia.svg Daniil Kvyat
33. Flag of the Netherlands.svg Max Verstappen
Debut 2016 Australian Grand Prix
First win 2016 Spanish Grand Prix
Last win 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix
Last event 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
RacesWins Podiums Poles F/Laps
2121615

The Red Bull RB12 is a Formula One racing car designed by Red Bull Racing to compete in the 2016 Formula One season. The car was driven by Daniel Ricciardo, Daniil Kvyat and Max Verstappen, the lattermost of whom swapped with Kvyat mid-season, moving from Scuderia Toro Rosso to Red Bull while Kvyat moved to Toro Rosso ahead of the Spanish Grand Prix. [2]

Contents

Design

The car used a customer Renault engine re-badged as a TAG Heuer following the breakdown in the relationship between Red Bull and Renault in 2015 as Renault re-formed their works constructor after Lotus buyout. This was the last Red Bull car with fuel and lubricants from Total — ending their eight-year partnership.

Livery

Ricciardo and Verstappen competed in the Austrian Grand Prix in special lederhosen-style competition suits. [3]

Competition history

Daniel Ricciardo (front) and Daniil Kvyat at the Bahrain Grand Prix Red Bull duo Bahrain 2016.jpg
Daniel Ricciardo (front) and Daniil Kvyat at the Bahrain Grand Prix

In the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, both Kvyat and Ricciardo performed well in all three practice sessions. In qualifying, Kvyat qualified a disappointing 18th following mechanical problems with his car, and Ricciardo went on to qualify 8th. In the race, Kvyat failed to start the race due to an electrical problem, meanwhile Ricciardo set the fastest lap and went on to finish the race in fourth.

In the Bahrain Grand Prix, under the short lived knock out style qualification format, [4] Kvyat was the first to be knocked out of Q2, thus starting in 15th. Ricciardo made it to Q3 and qualified in 5th, almost one and a half seconds behind pole sitter Lewis Hamilton. During the race, Kvyat had contact with Nico Hülkenberg on the first lap but was able to finish 7th, one lap behind winner Nico Rosberg. Ricciardo finished 4th, over a minute behind Rosberg.

In the Chinese Grand Prix, after a return to the normal qualifying format, Ricciardo and Kvyat qualified 2nd and 6th respectively. During the race, Ricciardo charged off the line to take the lead of the race from Rosberg. Kvyat charged up the inside of Sebastian Vettel in turn one, causing him to collide with Ferrari teammate Kimi Räikkönen. Ricciardo kept the lead until his left-rear tyre failed during lap 3 on the long straight between turns 13 and 14. Kvyat climbed his way to a 3rd-place finish, while Ricciardo had a great recovery drive to secure 4th. [5]

While in Q2 of the Russian Grand Prix, Ricciardo's wing mirror came free of its mount, and appeared to be held on by wiring alone. The mirror bounced into and out of the cockpit, causing quite a bit of distraction. Regardless of the distraction, Ricciardo moved onto Q3 and qualified 6th, but was elevated to 5th due to a five-place grid penalty assessed to Vettel for a change of his gearbox. [6] Kvyat, after barely making it into Q3, was able to qualify 8th. At the start of the race, Kvyat struck the rear of Vettel's Ferrari SF16-H braking for turn one, sending him into Ricciardo, causing all three cars damage. Then, during the long left handed turn three, Kvyat struck Vettel again from behind, sending Vettel into the outside wall at great speed. Kvyat was assessed a ten-second stop-and-go penalty for the contact with Vettel. Both Kvyat and Ricciardo's races were ruined by the first lap incidents. Ricciardo was able to finish 11th, while Kvyat only managed to finish 15th. [7]

Max Verstappen won on his debut with the team at the Spanish Grand Prix. Verstappen Spain 2016.jpg
Max Verstappen won on his debut with the team at the Spanish Grand Prix.

In the week leading up to the Spanish Grand Prix, Kvyat was relegated back to Scuderia Toro Rosso for the rest of the season, [8] while Verstappen was promoted in his place to Red Bull Racing. Verstappen qualified 4th, half of a second slower than Ricciardo, who qualified 3rd. On the first lap of the race, exiting the long right handed turn three, Hamilton and Rosberg collided, causing both to exit the race with damage. A safety car was deployed, with Ricciardo leading the race with Verstappen right behind him. Ricciardo went with a safer three-stop strategy, while Verstappen went onto the riskier two stop strategy. At the end of the different strategies, Ricciardo finished 4th, while Verstappen was able to stay out ahead of the two Ferrari drivers, making him the youngest ever race winner and first Dutch race winner in Formula One. [9]

Despite earning his first career pole during the Monaco Grand Prix, Ricciardo had to settle for 2nd place behind Lewis Hamilton after a pit stop error cost him the victory Ricciardo chasing Hamilton (27333224023).jpg
Despite earning his first career pole during the Monaco Grand Prix, Ricciardo had to settle for 2nd place behind Lewis Hamilton after a pit stop error cost him the victory

In the 3rd practice session of the Monaco Grand Prix, Verstappen had a small crash into the outside barrier of turn three. In Q1, Verstappen clipped the inside barrier in turn fifteen with his front right tire, breaking the steering linkage, pitching the car into the outside barrier of turn sixteen. Ricciardo qualified 1st, securing his first ever pole position, three-tenths of a second faster than 2nd place Rosberg. [10] Verstappen had to apply to the stewards for permission to start the race because he failed to set a qualifying time within the 107% rule. Verstappen elected to start the race from pit lane in front of Felipe Nasr, who also failed to set a time within the 107% rule. [11] The race started behind the safety car due to wet conditions. After the safety car came in, Ricciardo was able to build a thirteen-second gap ahead of Hamilton. Ricciardo came into the pits to switch to intermediate tyres, while Hamilton stayed on the extreme wet weather tyres. Ricciardo was able to reduce the gap to Hamilton to half of a second. Hamilton pitted for dry weather tyres, with Ricciardo following suit the next lap, lap 31. Ricciardo's pit crew did not have tyres ready to put onto his car, resulting in a very long stop, narrowly handing the lead to Hamilton. [12] Ricciardo finished the race in 2nd. After the start of the race, Verstappen was able to fight his way into the top ten. On lap 34, Verstappen crashed into the barriers, retiring himself from the race.

Since the 2016 Austrian Grand Prix, the team replaced Ferrari as the best of the rest behind Mercedes, often challenging Mercedes for race victories and finished on the podium at every race except Italy and Abu Dhabi. This was partly due to Verstappen's arrival at the team in Spain which caused Ricciardo to be pushed much more by Verstappen than he was by Kvyat, Ricciardo stating he has learnt from Verstappen's driving techniques in order to improve as a driver. At the 2016 Malaysian Grand Prix, the team achieved their first 1–2 in the V6 hybrid era, the first time it has happened since 2013 Brazilian Grand Prix, the last race of the V8 era. This came after both Mercedes drivers encountered issues throughout the race: Nico Rosberg was spun at the start of the race, while Hamilton suffered a dramatic explosion of his Mercedes engine whilst leading comfortably. Therefore, Ricciardo was able to achieve his first race win in more than 2 years, while Verstappen came in 2nd. After this race, Red Bull waited for another 6 years to record a 1-2 finish, which was achieved at the 2022 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix by the Red Bull RB12's distant successor, the Red Bull RB18.

At the 2016 Brazilian Grand Prix, Verstappen and Ricciardo qualified fourth and sixth respectively. [13] In a rain inflicted race, Verstappen barely managed to avoid hitting the guardrail when he spun on the main straight. After an additional tyre change from intermediates back to rain tyres, he ran in 15th place with just 16 laps remaining. He then made several overtakes in the closing laps to eventually finish on the podium in third place. [14] He received considerable praise for his performance, with his team principal Christian Horner calling it "one of the best drives I've seen in Formula 1". [15]

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

YearEntrantEngineTyresDriversGrands PrixPointsWCC
AUS BHR CHN RUS ESP MON CAN EUR AUT GBR HUN GER BEL ITA SIN MAL JPN USA MEX BRA ABU
2016 Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer P
Flag of Australia (converted).svg Daniel Ricciardo 44411427754322521633854682nd
Flag of Russia.svg Daniil Kvyat DNS7315
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Max Verstappen 1Ret482253117622Ret434

Related Research Articles

Red Bull Racing, currently competing as Oracle Red Bull Racing and also known simply as Red Bull or RBR, is a Formula One racing team, racing under an Austrian licence and based in the United Kingdom. It is one of two Formula One teams owned by conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, the other being Scuderia AlphaTauri. The Red Bull Racing team has been managed by Christian Horner since its formation in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 United States Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2015 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that took place on 25 October 2015. The race was contested over fifty-six laps and held at the Circuit of the Americas. It was the sixteenth round of the 2015 season and marked the thirty-seventh time that the United States Grand Prix was run as a round of the World Championship since its inception in 1950, and the fourth time that the event was hosted at this circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Japanese Grand Prix</span> Formula One motor race

The 2014 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 5 October 2014 at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, Mie. It was the 15th race of the 2014 FIA Formula One World Championship, and the 30th Formula One Japanese Grand Prix. Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 44-lap race starting from second position. His teammate, Nico Rosberg, finished second and Red Bull Racing driver Sebastian Vettel was third. It was Hamilton's eighth victory of the season and the 30th of his Formula One career.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Formula One World Championship</span> 67th season of FIA Formula One World Championship

The 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 70th season of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA)'s Formula One motor racing. It featured the 67th Formula One World Championship, a motor racing championship for Formula One cars which is recognised by the sport's governing body, the FIA, as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. Teams and drivers took part in twenty-one Grands Prix—making for the longest season in the sport's history—starting in Australia on 20 March and finishing in Abu Dhabi on 27 November as they competed for the World Drivers' and World Constructors' championships.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Bahrain Grand Prix</span> 4th round of the 2015 Formula One season

The 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that was held on 19 April 2015 at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. The race was the fourth round of the 2015 season and marked the eleventh time that the Bahrain Grand Prix has been run as a round of the Formula One World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Austrian Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2015 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 21 June 2015 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria. The race was the eighth round of the 2015 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the 29th running of the Austrian Grand Prix and the 28th time it had been held as a round of the Formula One World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Hungarian Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that took place on 26 July 2015 at the Hungaroring in Mogyoród, Hungary. It was the tenth round of the 2015 Formula One season the final race before the summer break and the 31st Hungarian Grand Prix, and the 30th time it had been held as a round of the World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Belgian Grand Prix</span> Formula One motor race held in 2015

The 2015 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 23 August 2015 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Spa, Belgium. It was the eleventh round of the 2015 Formula One season, and the 71st Belgian Grand Prix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Italian Grand Prix</span> 2015 Formula 1 race

The 2015 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 6 September 2015 at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza in Monza, Italy. The race was the twelfth round of the 2015 season, and marked the 85th running of the Italian Grand Prix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Singapore Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2015 Singapore Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 20 September 2015 at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Marina Bay, Singapore. The race was the thirteenth round of the 2015 season. It was the eighth time the race was run as a round of the Formula One World Championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Japanese Grand Prix</span> 14th round of the 2015 Formula One season

The 2015 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that was held on 27 September 2015 at the Suzuka Circuit in Suzuka, Japan. The race was the fourteenth round of the 2015 World Championship, and marked the forty-first running of the Japanese Grand Prix.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Yas Marina Circuit on 29 November 2015. The race was the nineteenth and final round of the 2015 Formula One World Championship, and marked the seventh running of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix as a round of the World Championship since its inception in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Chinese Grand Prix</span> 3rd round of the 2016 Formula One season

The 2016 Chinese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race which was held on 17 April 2016 at the Shanghai International Circuit in Shanghai, China. The race was the third round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the thirteenth time that the Chinese Grand Prix has been run as a round of the Formula One World Championship. The race was convincingly won by Nico Rosberg, who finished over 30 seconds ahead of second-placed Sebastian Vettel. Defending world champion Lewis Hamilton suffered a number of setbacks both in qualifying and during the race itself, eventually finishing in 7th place.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Russian Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2016 Russian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that took place on 1 May 2016. The race, contested over fifty-three laps, was held at the Sochi Autodrom. It was the fourth round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship and marked the fifth running of the Russian Grand Prix, the third time as a round of the Formula One World Championship since the series inception in 1950. Nico Rosberg of Mercedes came into the race leading the championship ahead of his teammate Lewis Hamilton, who was the defending race winner.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Spanish Grand Prix</span> Formula One motor race held on 15 May 2016

The 2016 Spanish Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 15 May 2016 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya in Montmeló, Spain. The race was the fifth round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the forty-sixth running of the Spanish Grand Prix as a round of the Formula One World Championship. It was the twenty-sixth time that the race has been held at the circuit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Monaco Grand Prix</span> 2016 Formula One motor race

The 2016 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 29 May 2016 at the Circuit de Monaco, a street circuit that runs through the Principality of Monaco. It was the sixth round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the seventy-fourth time that the Monaco Grand Prix had been held, as well as the sixty-third time it had been held as a round of the Formula One World Championship since the series inception in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 European Grand Prix</span> Formula One motor race 2016 at Baku, Azerbaijan

The 2016 European Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that was held on 19 June 2016 at the Baku City Circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan. The race was the eighth round of the 2016 season, and marked the twenty-third running of the European Grand Prix as a round of the Formula One World Championship and, as of 2023, the last time the title European Grand Prix was used for a Formula One race. It was the first and last time that the race was held at the circuit and the first time that a Grand Prix had been held in Azerbaijan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Austrian Grand Prix</span> Ninth round of the 2016 Formula One World Championship

The 2016 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that was held on 3 July 2016 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria. The race, which was contested over 71 laps, was the ninth round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the 30th running of the Austrian Grand Prix and the 29th time it had been held as a round of the Formula One World Championship since the series inception in 1950.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix</span> Final Formula 1 race of 2016

The 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 27 November 2016 at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The race was the twenty-first and final round of the 2016 FIA Formula One World Championship and determined the 2016 World Drivers' Championship. It marked the eighth running of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix and the eighth time that the race had been run as a World Championship event since the inaugural race in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2017 Singapore Grand Prix</span> Motor car race

The 2017 Singapore Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 17 September 2017 at the Marina Bay Street Circuit in Marina Bay, Singapore. It was the fourteenth round of the 2017 FIA Formula One World Championship, and marked the eighteenth running of the Singapore Grand Prix, the tenth time the race had been held at Marina Bay.

References

  1. "RB12". redbullracing.com. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
  2. "2016 Final F1 Entry List". fia.com. FIA. Archived from the original on 19 February 2016. Retrieved 19 February 2016.
  3. "Red Bull Drivers Get Special Race Suits for Austria". theversed.com. July 2016. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  4. "FIA ANNOUNCES WORLD MOTOR SPORT COUNCIL DECISIONS". fia.com. 4 March 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  5. "Lewis Hamilton bids to recover in Chinese Grand Prix - BBC Sport". bbc.com. 17 April 2016. Archived from the original on April 17, 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  6. "Vettel receives five place grid drop". speedcafe.com. 30 April 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  7. "F1: Russian Grand Prix – as it happened - Sport - The Guardian". theguardian.com. 1 May 2016. Archived from the original on May 1, 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  8. "Kvyat still struggling to fathom departure from Red Bull - Auto Racing". ap.org. 15 May 2016. Archived from the original on May 15, 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  9. "Verstappen becomes youngest F1 winner after Mercedes crash - Auto Racing". ap.org. 15 May 2016. Archived from the original on May 15, 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  10. "Ricciardo all smiles at Monaco GP, Hamilton's woes continue". ap.org. Archived from the original on 28 October 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  11. "Verstappen and Nasr to start from pit lane". formula1.com. 3 June 2016. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  12. "Lewis Hamilton wins Monaco GP after Red Bull pit-stop agony – as it happened - Les Roopanarine - Sport - The Guardian". theguardian.com. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 25 June 2016.
  13. "Formula 1 Grande Premio do Brasil 2016 - Qualifying". formula1.com. Formula One World Championship Limited. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  14. Galloway, James (14 November 2016). "Max Verstappen stole the show in Brazil GP, says Mercedes' Toto Wolff". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
  15. Gill, Pete; Esler, William (14 November 2016). "Max Verstappen's Brazilian GP drive hailed as 'one of the best ever in F1'". Sky Sports. Archived from the original on 17 November 2016. Retrieved 17 November 2016.