REVEALED: Red Bull show off Verstappen’s 2022 title defence challenger, the RB18

Red Bull have launched their 2022 Formula 1 campaign with what appeared to be a showcar in a bid to keep the RB18 under wraps for a little longer

The four-time world champions, who are the second team to launch their 2022 programme after Haas did so on Friday, showcased a new livery on a car that bears a striking resembelance to the showcar F1 produced to showcase the new regulations with a digital launch from the Red Bull Racing Technology Campus.

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The car unveiled "won't look very much like this" by the time we get to the first race of the season in Bahrain, said Team Principal Christian Horner with teams keen to keep their new designs hidden from rivals for as long as possible.

This is also the first car Red Bull have created since engine partner Honda left the sport. The power unit they will use this year was created by the Japanese manufacturer, however it will be badged under the operation's new engine division Red Bull Powertrains.

Max Verstappen beat Lewis Hamilton to the title on the last lap of the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi but Red Bull came up short versus Mercedes in the constructors’ championship

Verstappen will run the number one on his car for his title defence, with team mate Sergio Perez returning for a second season with the team.

Also on Wednesday, Red Bull also announced an expanded partnership with Oracle, with the American cloud company becoming title sponsor.

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Working with Oracle, the team said they increased the number of simulations they ran 1,000x to improve the accuracy of their predictions.

We’ll see the car hit the track in anger later this month when all the teams complete three days of running at Barcelona.