Verstappen reveals Red Bull request he has been ‘asking for a while’

Unveiling a sparkling blue livery as Red Bull opted to go with something different as Formula 1 embraces a new era, Max Verstappen revealed he’d been asking for the change for some time.

Red Bull became the first team to unveil its 2026 livery, doing so in a joint launch along with Racing Bulls in Detroit.

Max Verstappen welcomes new-look RB22 livery

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The team took the covers off a fresh but familiar look, harking back to its debut season in 2005 with a glossy bold blue colour scheme.

It’s a change that Verstappen had been wanting for some time.

“I think it’s much better,” Verstappen said of the new-look livery. “Yeah, I’ve been asking for this for a while, so this is great.

“I like the shine. I like the blue, it’s my favorite color. I like the outline of the Red Bull logo as well. It’s much more fresh.”

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But it’s not just the livery that will be different this season as Formula 1 welcomes a new technical era with smaller, lighter, more agile cars. The RB22 will also be powered by Red Bull Powertrains very first in-house engine, designed along with Ford.

The teams will have their first outing with the new cars in a behind-closed-door test at the Circuit de Catalunya, starting January 26.

“Yeah, it’s all still a bit unknown,” said the four-time World Champion. “Of course, it’s a very big, big change with the engine, the car, as you can see also the dimension of the car has changed a bit.

“So for us drivers, I think, as well initially, yeah, we’ll take a bit of time to adjust. And that’s why it’s very important during the test days that we are getting our laps so we can optimise everything as well as possible.”

The Dutchman heads into the new season with a new number on his Red Bull racer after losing the number ‘1’ to Lando Norris last season.

Verstappen will instead race the number ‘3’ as he looks to build on last year’s late-season momentum that saw him overturn a deficit of more than a 100 points to finish second in the standings, losing the title by two points to the McLaren driver.

“Yeah, it’s always better to have an ending like that,” he said.

“Sure, the motivation is very high. Everyone is ready. I’m very excited to start this chapter.”

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