‘The most beautiful car there is’ – ‘Invincible’ RB20 warning issued by ex-Red Bull driver

Sergio Perez heads out in the RB20.

Jaime Alguersuari talked up the “invincible” pairing of Max Verstappen and Red Bull as the “beautiful” RB20 readies for F1 2024 competition.

Red Bull made their rivals wait by being the very last team to unveil their challenger for F1 2024, the RB20, a machine that many were eager to lay eyes on as it looks to follow the dominant RB19 which won 21 of the 22 grands prix held last year.

And when the RB20 did emerge from under the covers, there was a collective gulp, with Bahrain testing having confirmed that Red Bull has gone down a very different route to the rest of the grid with the design of their latest challenger, one which is being widely-tipped in the F1 paddock to lead the way once more.

Jaime Alguersuari brands Max Verstappen and Red Bull ‘invincible’

If the other teams were looking for a comforting voice to tell them that it is too early say Verstappen and Red Bull will continue their all-conquering ways, then it has not come in the form of Alguersuari, who raced for Red Bull’s second team between 2009-11 when it was called Toro Rosso.

A car very easy on the eyes, Alguersuari also expects it to be extremely quick with Verstappen at the wheel, a combination which he deems “invincible”.

“The Red Bull this year… they have made a plane. It’s also the most beautiful car there is,” said Alguersuari on LaSexta’s ‘Jugones’ programme.

“Max never fails and that’s why they are invincible too.”

While Verstappen has not shed much light on how he expects the RB20 to stack up against the competition, he did confirm that his latest weapon is an improvement on the RB19 with which he won 19 grands prix last season.

Speaking to media including PlanetF1.com’s Thomas Maher in Bahrain, Verstappen, with a smile, said: “If it would have been worse then we did a very bad job, so I know for sure the car is better than last year’s car.

“But I think everyone on the grid has a better car than last year.”

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So, if Verstappen and Red Bull will retain their grip on the Drivers’ and Constructors’ titles by Alguersuari’s reckoning, the next question is who wins out in the ‘best of the rest’ contest?

Mercedes, Ferrari and McLaren are all expected to pick up where they left off in that battle for P2, while Aston Martin are something of an unknown ahead of the F1 2024 season-opener in Bahrain.

The Silverstone-based squad was left very happy with their trouble-free run through testing at the Bahrain International Circuit, though it is a case of waiting to find out where they pop up in the pecking order.

The one thing Alguersuari is confident of is that Aston Martin are not as fast as Ferrari, who set the pace in testing.

“Ferrari is faster than Aston Martin,” he stated.

All four above teams will hope that should Verstappen and Red Bull start out in front as predicted, then this time around, it will be an advantage that can be eliminated across the season.