Why Racing Bulls' car is easier to drive but Red Bull's RB21 offers bigger rewards

In the days before Red Bull decided to indulge in some early-season deck shuffling, Max Verstappen lent his support to the labouring Liam Lawson - and pithily laid bare the task of handling a capricious RB21 chassis.

"I think that when you put Liam in the Racing Bulls car, he will go faster," the four-time champion remarked. "I really think so. That car is easier to drive than ours."

The difficulty in coaxing a competitive lap time from Red Bull's RB21 for those unprepared for the challenge is well known. By comparison, Racing Bulls' VCARB 02 has what engineers like to term as a 'lower performance ceiling', but the characteristics of the car allow it to be driven closer to that ceiling at all times. Getting the RB21 to sing the higher notes is a much more challenging task, albeit one that comes with a reward.

The two cars have commonality in the suspension design, as Racing Bulls takes the transferrable items from Red Bull, but given their different aero platforms it means that the cars will be set up differently to get the most from the underbody. In that, there are two teams with different philosophies: Red Bull is more inclined to take liberties to expand the performance 'envelope', while Racing Bulls wants a car that generates repeatable on-track results to ensure it remains consistently in the midfield mix.

Any differences in philosophy will manifest themselves in how each team approaches set-up options like ride heights. Red Bull knows the value of designing a floor package that can run consistently low to the ground, as this simply generates more downforce through 'ground effect'; airflow generates a low pressure zone as it is accelerated through the Venturi tunnels and expands at the diffuser, and this effect is enhanced when the car is closer to the ground. But this doesn't come for free; the underbody is more susceptible to bumps in the road and, when not driven quickly enough, can't build that airflow acceleration quite enough. 

That induces instability at the rear. Designing a floor that can operate at marginally higher ride heights does strip away at peak performance, but it does make the car a little bit less twitchy. We're only talking about a millimetre or two here in difference, but it's true that any variation here can contribute to how a car handles in certain corners.

The Racing Bulls car has easier handling characteristics and performs better in low speed corners, but it cannot match the pure pace of Red Bull's car

Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images

In comparing Yuki Tsunoda's qualifying overlay to Max Verstappen's in their Australia Q3 laps (Tsunoda set a 1m15.670s, Verstappen a 1m15.481s) the performance of the VCARB 02 in lower-speed corners is marginally better than the Red Bull - but the reward of performance in the medium-to-high speed corners generally outweighs this. When the chance is there for the Red Bull to carry more speed into the corner, it benefits from the higher peak downforce, but at low speed it makes the car incredibly difficult to bring into the corners.

Shifting some of the 'balance' forward, in perhaps implementing a higher-downforce front wing or tuning the front suspension preload, can mitigate the effect of understeering into the corners - but at low speeds this can make the rear end incredibly flighty. This is something that Verstappen can handle, as he balances the rear end with a little bit of a lift off the throttle, but running into the corners without the requisite speed will unsettle the car.

Let's take Verstappen and Lawson's Q1 laps in China, for example. Verstappen has much more decisive throttle inputs; he has confidence in when to bleed off the throttle and when to tack it on through the corners, because raising his minimum speed and the risk of understeering into corners can be counteracted by the 'pointiness' of the car. The RB21 rewards bravado, and there were occasions when Lawson looked afraid of the car. That's visible in his driving; when approaching Turn 1, he tries to take more speed in versus Verstappen's approach of arriving into the corner with less top speed but with the aim of maintaining more minimum speed through the corner. Lawson also counter-intuitively brakes sooner; Verstappen by comparison lifts a smidgen sooner, lets the rear keep biting, and then brakes. 

The Red Bull requires higher minimum speeds to operate effectively, leading to faster mid-corner speeds, but the VCARB 02 settles more quickly and offers an immediate return in traction

In that opening complex of winding corners, Lawson loses the speed and then the rear to suffer a snap, compounding his problem as he enters Turn 3 about 15-20kph in arrears. This seems to put the Kiwi on the retreat, and his tentative approach to tacking on the throttle on the exit of Turn 8 hurts his traction. In this instance, he's fighting the car with the demeanour of a man who knows he'll lose.

The Racing Bulls, by comparison, deals with the slow-corner traction much more adeptly as it appears to be much more settled on exits, but it doesn't quite have the platform for the higher-speed turns; Tsunoda is initially quick in China's Turn 7 left-hander and his delta is very briefly up on Verstappen's, but he ends up having to lift by about 30% to ensure the car makes the corner. 

Boiled down to the constituent elements, the key difference that precipitates between the two cars is this: the Red Bull requires higher minimum speeds to operate effectively, leading to faster mid-corner speeds, but the VCARB 02 settles more quickly and offers an immediate return in traction. 

It sounds obvious, but driving the Red Bull fast is the only way to control it

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool

But if you drive the Red Bull right through those slower corners, it's possible to shake out faster than the Racing Bulls machinery. As we've noted: the low-speed performance of the VCARB 02 is much more consistent and - if you try to drive both cars the same - will likely be faster through the corner and in the exit traction phase. The Red Bull is all about keeping the minimum speed through those low-speed corners higher and, although it loses time in traction as the rear takes longer to stabilise, the approach can lead to a slight net gain in time. Repeat that over a few corners, and it all begins to add up. 

The high-speed prowess of the Red Bull is never in doubt; the team's approach to heighten that characteristic ensures that it can even surpass McLaren for pace in those corners. But the RB21 has such a particular way of driving it, and means that the drivers have to attack the lower-speed corners and hold on as they apply the power. 

It's contrary to the McLaren, which Lando Norris also believes is difficult - but in that instance, the MCL39 has to take a much more passive approach to the corner entry, and then slowly ladle on the power as the speed builds to deliver its tractive advantage. It's a bit more rope-a-dope in that sense; take it easy on the way in, wait for the car's wilder qualities to subside, and then punch back early.

Whether the Racing Bulls is ultimately easier to drive is, for Red Bull, largely immaterial; it's not going to sacrifice its own speed and lean into its sister team's design concept because the most salient fact is this: it won't win races that way. The RB21 should have the better baseline, and it might take some upgrades to ensure the car is consistently in its performance window. It's going to be a tough ask for Tsunoda to get acquainted with the car off the bat but, if he ensures he doesn't dilute his combative style and yet exercises patience with the rear end, he might surprise.

Either way, he'll turn heads - whether it's metaphorical or literal depends on his adaptation.

Tsunoda will make his RB21 debut in Japanese GP opening practice, when all eyes will be on him

Photo by: Red Bull Content Pool