Wednesday saw Racing Bulls take to the track for the second of the three available test days at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. British driver Arvid Lindblad, born in 2007, made his debut as an official driver, completing 120 laps and setting a best time of 1:19.420, which placed him seventh in the final classification — a ranking of limited relevance at this stage.
Across the first two sessions of the year, Racing Bulls completed a total of 208 laps, equivalent to nearly one thousand kilometres, with much of the credit going to the Red Bull Powertrains department. At the end of yesterday’s running, Racing Bulls Chief Technical Officer Tim Goss and Arvid Lindblad both expressed satisfaction with the car and the Power Unit. As already anticipated, the VCARB03 will suffer from overweight issues during the early phase of the season; the updates scheduled to arrive by May are aimed at addressing this problem and unlocking additional performance.
Goss, Racing Bulls: “The immediate reliability of RBPT cannot be underestimated”, but not everything ran smoothly
“These have been very productive days: in the first test the objective is to get on track and build mileage, and that’s exactly what we achieved. It’s a completely new car and everything is different: new aerodynamics, safety, Power Unit, tyres, electronics — absolutely everything has changed, and Formula 1 has never seen this level of change before. To go out on track and run positively, both for us and for our sister team, is very impressive,” were the first comments from the British engineer, who then went on to explain the work carried out.
“On the first day we simply tried to complete as many laps as possible, while today we spent the morning studying the car from an aerodynamic point of view: we fitted aero rakes and completed an aerodynamic mapping programme to make sure it matched the work done back at the factory. This afternoon we focused on mileage in order to build — for both the driver and ourselves — an understanding of how the Power Unit, the car and the tyres are all connected.”
Officially, only praise has been directed at the power unit produced in Milton Keynes, which completed a total of 393 laps across four individual test days. “The work done by Red Bull Ford Powertrains (RBPT) has been impressive: as a complete newcomer to Formula 1, completing almost 200 laps on the first day — it’s easy to take that level of reliability for granted, but it really cannot be underestimated. The drivability is fantastic; the challenge we’ve encountered — probably along with other teams — is how energy management changes from lap to lap and from corner to corner, and understanding how to set it up and get the drivers used to it,” Tim Goss explained in an interview with Formula 1.
GP-news.net can reveal that, during the early days of running, not everything went according to plan. The British Power Unit has been affected by higher-than-expected overheating, forcing engineers to adopt conservative cooling solutions, particularly during corner exits.
Lindblad’s debut with Racing Bulls: “The cars are very different, I’m thinking about how to make the difference”
“The plan was to run yesterday, but obviously with the rain we postponed it. I really enjoyed it, it was a fantastic day. We completed the programme, there are a few things to work on, but overall I think it was a positive day and I’m happy with how it went. Obviously it’s very different to drive, so it’s exciting and fun to drive a Formula 1 car, but you can really feel the difference and I’m thinking about how I can make the difference, how to get the most out of all the different parts of the car, because it drives differently,” said the new Racing Bulls driver.
“There are a few things to improve, but overall it was really impressive, I think. There weren’t any major reliability issues. The things I’m talking about are relatively minor. There are areas that can be improved, but they are much better than I expected,” Lindblad later admitted.
On the other side, the feedback from the young British debutant was highly appreciated by the team, as Tim Goss revealed. “He’s very calm and professional, his feedback is very direct; for such a young driver, it’s impressive. His session in the car was about getting familiar with this type of car, which is very different not only in terms of drivability but also energy management, and he was calm, composed and professional. While we are trying to understand the car’s balance, his feedback was very simple and clear, so I’m very impressed.”
As Racing Bulls concludes its initial shakedown, the focus shifts toward refining the cooling package and starting the weight-reduction program. While the VCARB03 has proven it can go the distance, the real challenge will be turning that reliability into podium-contending pace once the weight is stripped away. The partnership with RBPT has provided a solid foundation, but the “overweight” hurdle remains the primary obstacle between the team and its championship ambitions. With the May update package already in development, the opening rounds of 2026 will be a game of survival and optimization for the Faenza squad.
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