Infiniti Red Bull Racing previews the final round in Abu Dhabi this weekend.

Daniel Ricciardo

Q1: You won three races last year, but perhaps your best performance came in Abu Dhabi. Fair assessment?

Ricciardo: Honestly yeah, I think it really was my best weekend of 2014. It wasn't a win but I nailed qualifying. I nailed the race. I nailed the whole thing. 

Pace, consistency, everything was awesome and it got me from the back of the grid to fourth, so yes, in terms of pure performance, it was my best race.

Q2: Yas Marina isn't an obvious Daniel Ricciardo happy place, but you like the circuit more than we'd expect.

Ricciardo: I do. I like the last sector in particular because that turns it into an exciting track. It's twisty and you get right up close with the walls. You also have to contend with your tires going off because the start of the lap is so fast. By the third sector, you're really having to manage your rubber. It's a challenge.

Q3: What does twilight racing bring to the party?

Ricciardo: I think starting in the sun and ending in the dark is pretty cool. Actually, I think the whole atmosphere of the weekend is pretty cool. 

Lots of Aussies make the trip – lots of Europeans, and there's a really good multicultural scene. Lots of boat parties in the marina. Lots of fun. I do like Abu Dhabi.

Q4: What's your plan after Abu Dhabi?

Ricciardo: I'll probably stay out for a few days and do some riding in the desert. I did that after Bahrain too and it was good fun.

Q5: Cars? Horses? Camels?

Ricciardo: Bikes! I do enjoy the UAE. I love the heat, and the whole outdoor lifestyle. It's great for dirt bikes, buggies, whatever. There's not really any rules. You can ride where you like. I'll have some fun.

Daniil Kvyat

Q1: Final round – Abu Dhabi. It's a circuit that has some particularly good memories for you isn't it?

Kvyat: I generally enjoy most tracks, and in one way or another they all have good associations. But yes, it's particularly the case at Yas Marina because I won the GP3 championship there. I had a good qualifying there last year. I was fifth on the grid, I think, but the race didn't work out so well as I had to retire with an engine problem. 

Still, it's been enjoyable. It's a good track to drive, even if it's one of the modern ones with the big run-off areas. It's very technical though, and it takes some time to get your head around it. Do that and you'll get a good lap, but it's not as easy as it looks.

Q2: What do you recall about that GP3 win in 2013, standing on the podium at Yas?

Kvyat: Two things: The first is that winning always feels great, and the second is that it's actually the last race that I won, so it's a bloody long time ago! I'd really like to change that. I miss that feeling a lot.

Q3: It is the last race of the season, and for most of the paddock that comes with a definite "schools out" feeling. Do you get that too?

Kvyat: Actually, it's a kind of a sad weekend in some ways, because it's the last race of the season, which for a driver is not great. Sure, you're mentally tired after a long season, but whenever the racing stops there's a bit of an empty feeling inside. You really miss racing. At least I do. But I'm sure I'll find some way of having some fun in the winter.

The Human Challenge in F1: Rob Marshall Ahead of the Abu Dhabi GP

Go behind the scenes of the final race of the 2015 season. Abu Dhabi brings a unique set of challenges from practice in the afternoon to a race at dusk

Red Bull racing unveils new F1 car at Jerez, Spain, and hopes to catch Mercedes this year.

After an intensely busy off-season, Infiniti Red Bull’s Racing’s 2015 Formula One car, the RB11, has hit the track and begun testing at the Circuito de Jerez in Spain ahead of the new season.

Featuring a striking new test livery, the RB11 features a host of improvements in all areas as the team seeks to improve on its 2014 campaign, when it took the RB10 from a difficult start to second place in the Constructors’ Championship. The most notable shape change to this year’s car is the lower nose box and front of the chassis, which were amended in line with the latest regulations, but beyond that many of the RB11’s updates are under its all–new black and white skin.

THE RB11 DESIGN

Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey said: “The design of the RB11 has been very much about understanding what we learned from last season, which was a big regulation change as far as the power unit is concerned and the packaging that goes with that and setting about optimizing the car from those lessons.”

Chief Engineering Officer Rob Marshall added: “There are some changes that affect the shape of the front of the car but beyond that most of the changes are under the skin. We’ve identified the areas where we can make improvements and we’ve worked hard on these. There won’t be a lot that’s visible to the naked eye but a lot of hard work has gone into the bits that are hidden.”

A large part of that work has involved improvements to Renault Sport’s Energy F1 power unit, updates that have been made in closer collaboration with the team.

“The relationship with Renault is a lot closer now,” says Team Principal Christian Horner of the team’s technical ties with the French manufacturer. “Red Bull is the only partner for Renault now, through ourselves and Toro Rosso, and that focus from Renault together with a close involvement with our design team is yielding good results and a far closer integration between the power unit and the chassis side. Working in unison with Renault we can really make some big steps forward this year.”

Newey adds that the process of reducing the deficit the team suffered last year will take time.

“We have been working very hard with our partners Renault to help them develop the engine,” he says. “What we have to remember is that the internal combustion engine and its very complicated associated items, the ERS and turbocharger, are long lead time items. Those are things where if one team takes an advantage then it takes time to overthrow that or get back on a par with or hopefully ahead.”

THE RB11 BUILD

Christian Horner commented: “We’ve been pushing to the limit as usual. We had a very tight timescale for the car to be prepared in time for the first test, but that’s normal in this team. If you’re not on the limit, you’re not trying hard enough.”

THE DRIVERS

The team’s 2015 challenge will be spearheaded by a new look Red Bull driver line-up, introduced last week at the team’s #OnBoard event, with Daniil Kvyat joining Daniel Ricciardo at the wheel of the RB11.

“It’s an exciting and dynamic line-up,” says Christian. “We know the quality of Daniel following his performances last year and in Daniil we have an outstanding talent. The speed, commitment and determination he demonstrated were all the qualities we’re looking for.

“We’ve already seen what Daniel is capable of and we firmly believe that Dany has all the same attributes,” he adds. “They’re young, hungry, they’re incredibly quick and I think they are going to push each other very hard throughout the year.”

For drivers Ricciardo and Kvyat, the brief two-month wait for a return to the cockpit is over and a first taste of the RB11’s potential awaits.

“I’m looking forward to driving the RB11 and I’m hanging out to get behind the wheel again. I hope it’s going to be a beast. We’ll soon find out,” says Daniel.

“There was plenty of pressure on me last year to prove myself in a top team and I think everyone knows now what I’m capable of so I’m excited – excited to build on what we achieved in 2014 and ready to give Mercedes a good fight.”

“It’s going to be very exciting to drive an Infiniti Red Bull Racing car for the first time for me,” adds Daniil. “It’s a fantastic opportunity for me and I’m really looking forward to finally getting into the car. It’s going to be cool. Though many people in the team know me quite well, there is still the challenge of entering a new team for myself. However, I haven’t really set any targets for 2015. I just want to keep doing the best job possible with hard work and the right attitude and that’s the best thing I can do.”

On joining forces with Daniel for 2015, Kvyat added: “Me and Daniel have known each other for quite a long time, about five or six years from when I entered the Red Bull Junior Team. We have a good relationship and I hope to have a strong relationship based on healthy competition, which will push the team forward.”

THE TECHNICAL TEAM

The change in driver line-up behind the wheel has to a lesser degree also been mirrored in the team’s technical department. While Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey is still very much involved with the team, he divides his time between the team and Red Bull’s new Advanced Technologies division, a new technical group has been put in place to take the team forward.

“In anticipation of [Adrian’s dual role] we created a senior technology team, led by Rob Marshall, which is assuming some of the day-to-day responsibilities that Adrian previously held,” explains Horner. “However, Adrian still performs a very active role within that team and contributes on a daily and weekly basis.”

The Chief Technical Officer was still deeply involved in the conception of the RB11. “Although I’ve been slightly less hands on than previously, I was still very much involved in the layout of the car, the package, and really trying to eke every bit of performance out of it we can do, but very much working with the engineering team,” says Newey.

That engineering team is headed by Rob Marshall, who previously held the post of Chief Designer. He now steps up to become Chief Engineering Officer. The group also features Head of Aerodynamics Dan Fallows; Chief Engineer, Car Engineering Paul Monaghan; and Chief Engineer, Performance Engineering Pierre Waché.

Head of Aerodynamics Dan Fallows says: “Adrian has changed his role slightly and we’re now at the stage where we can be more self-sufficient. However, Adrian is still heavily involved. The reason the transition has been so good is that we’re all used to working the way Adrian works and we follow his philosophy. Therefore, when he does have an input into our discussions it feels very natural.”

Newey adds: “I’m stepping back a bit, getting involved in other things, so that Formula One isn’t my sole focus. I will still be going to races and I will certainly be at the first race and at the pre-season tests, overseeing, guiding and mentoring and still trying to come up with some ideas of my own as well.”

The RB11 is the first product of this new process, with Newey heavily involved in the project, which has ultimately been delivered under the stewardship of the new technical group.

Christian concludes: “Our target is simple: to close down the gap to Mercedes yet further,” says Horner. “We were the only team other than Mercedes to win a grand prix in 2014 and we won three with Daniel Ricciardo. Our target is to close the gap down and put Mercedes under as much pressure as we possibly can. We know what we’re aiming at, we know what we need to achieve and I believe that with the RB11, with the drivers we have and with the new structures put in place we should be able to do that.”