Red Bull has unveiled a striking blue, heritage-inspired livery for the 2026 Formula 1 season, honouring both a visual nod to its past and the beginning of a significant new chapter for the team. Max Verstappen will drive the RB22 alongside new team-mate Isack Hadjar, with the season getting underway at the 2026 Australian Grand Prix from March 6-8.
Red Bull Racing revealed the RB22 at a launch event in Detroit on Thursday night, showcasing a throwback blue design that honours the team’s original Formula 1 appearance from 2005.
The Milton Keynes outfit, along with their junior operation Racing Bulls, became the first teams to present their 2026 liveries as both organisations celebrated the dawn of a new power unit era. The event took place at the Detroit headquarters of Red Bull’s new engine partner, Ford.
For the first time since entering Formula 1 more than two decades ago, Red Bull will race with an engine it has built itself. The power unit has been developed in partnership with Ford and arrives alongside sweeping new technical regulations covering both chassis and power units for 2026.
A nod to Red Bull’s roots
Red Bull confirmed that the RB22’s appearance is designed to reflect the team’s beginnings in the sport, describing it as “a return to the gloss finish first seen when the team made its debut back in 2005”.
In a detailed team statement, Red Bull outlined the significance of the moment:
“Formula 1 is about to enter a new era, as the sport’s technical regulations undergo a seismic change. This is also a defining moment for Oracle Red Bull Racing, because the opening round of the season in Melbourne will mark the official race debut of Red Bull Ford Powertrains, as the team now builds both car and power unit under the same roof for the very first time.
“To acknowledge this bold move, the RB22 will wear a livery inspired by Red Bull’s original look in F1. It harks back to a more classic Red Bull Racing presence, sharpening reflections, boosting contrast under the lights and making heritage elements of the new livery feel richer and more premium at speed.”
Verstappen and a new-look line-up
Max Verstappen attended the launch as he prepares to begin a campaign aimed at reclaiming the drivers’ championship. The Dutchman’s run of four consecutive world titles was halted last season by McLaren’s Lando Norris, but Verstappen finished 2025 strongly to remain firmly in contention until the final rounds.
Verstappen will also line up alongside a new team-mate in 2026. French driver Isack Hadjar, aged 21, has been promoted from Racing Bulls following what Red Bull described as an outstanding rookie season.
Mekies sets expectations for a challenging start
Team principal Laurent Mekies begins his first full season in charge after replacing Christian Horner midway through last year. While optimistic about the long-term potential of the Red Bull-Ford project, Mekies has made it clear that the early stages of 2026 will likely be difficult:
“We know it’s going to come with some difficulties. We know we are going to have quite a few sleepless nights and a few headaches, but please bear with us for the first few months.
“Nobody underestimates the size of the mountain that we have to climb. It’s the sort of challenge we all want to be associated with, and hopefully eventually we will come out on top.
“I think it would be naive, to say the least, for us to think that yes, we have done everything from zero – with great support from Ford – and then we turn up at the first race and we are the same level as people that have been doing it for many years.
“It’s not going to be like that. We are going to be trailing them, we are going to be in an incredibly high development rate season, both on the chassis side and on the power unit side.
“We believe in our people, and therefore the fact that we’ve put together what we believe is an extremely strong team with extremely strong partners.”
Momentum from a strong finish to 2025
Red Bull endured a challenging 2025 season as McLaren surged to the 2025 constructors’ championship, but the campaign ended on a high note. Verstappen claimed six victories across the final nine races, closing the gap to Norris to just two points by the end of the year.
Reflecting on how development can transform a season, Mekies added:
“You have seen last year on a season that as the last year of a regulations cycle, you could still see how much the team could do through the season in terms of development.
“Well take that for 2026 multiplied by three or four in terms of development rate, certainly for us in terms of how much we have to learn. So we take it step by step but with he right level of aggressiveness.”
A period of major change behind the scenes
The RB22 also represents a significant shift off the track. Red Bull will start a season without either Christian Horner or Dr Helmut Marko for the first time since joining Formula 1 in 2005.
Horner was removed from his roles as team principal and chief executive in July amid declining performance and internal tensions at the Milton Keynes base. Although Marko initially appeared secure, the long-serving motorsport advisor departed at the conclusion of the 2025 campaign.
This season will also be the first Red Bull car produced without any involvement from Adrian Newey, following confirmation of the legendary designer’s exit in May 2024.
Mekies is credited with quickly stabilising the team environment, overseeing Verstappen’s late-season resurgence, and adopting a calmer, less confrontational leadership style.
Given the scale of technical and organisational change, Red Bull’s immediate competitiveness would represent a significant achievement. A key question, should early results prove difficult, will be how Verstappen views the team’s long-term trajectory and whether patience can be maintained during the rebuild.
Testing and season opener confirmed
With the introduction of all-new regulations, Formula 1 has scheduled three pre-season tests ahead of the opening race.
The first will take place behind closed doors in Barcelona from January 26-30. Two further tests will follow in Bahrain on February 11-13 and February 18-20.
After testing concludes, teams will have two weeks to finalise preparations for the championship’s opening round.
The 2026 Formula 1 season begins with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne from March 6-8. Practice sessions start on Friday, 6 March, qualifying follows on Saturday, 7 March, and the first race of the new era takes place on Sunday, 8 March.
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