Red Bull holds F1/football challenge; Verstappen in H7 re-opening

FormulaRapida.net

6 months ago

Red Bull holds a special challenge against Leeds United football players, as Max Verstappen joins several in Hangar 7 re-opening.

Oracle Red Bull Racing took their Championship winning RB7 to the Champions of the Championship, to see who came out on top! Formula Two star and Red Bull Junior driver Arvid Lindblad took to the historic Elland Road pitch to race players of Premier League bound Leeds United. The race, which involved moving from one penalty box to the other and back, was a fun challenge to determine who was fastest on grass – a footballer or a Formula One car. The concept was dreamt up by Leeds’ players on a visit to the Team’s garage at last year’s British GP, and as they watched the race from Red Bull’s Pole Position hospitality, they thought they might be able to beat an F1 car – if a few obstacles were added.

Willy Gnonto, Largie Ramazani and Isaac Schmidt were picked as the Club’s fastest players to sprint alongside Arvid, at the wheel of the RB7. The obstacles in question, for the 2011 World Drivers’ and Constructors winning car, were the Elland Road turf and a 180 degree turn to head back to the opposition’s box. The race was closely fought, with the footballers getting the quicker start as the car struggled for grip on the grass with its wet tyres. But after a slow getaway, the RB7 roared into action, catching the players at the opposite penalty box and a smooth turn from Arvid allowed Oracle Red Bull Racing to cruise to victory.

Arvid, said: “Ahead of the race I was a bit nervous. I’d never driven on grass and had no idea how it would go – only Red Bull would make something like this happen! The car has a ton of horsepower and there is not much grip on grass, so I wasn’t sure if I could go full throttle and turn the car properly. It was great fun to challenge my skills and compete against footballers rather than other drivers.”

Leeds United’s Largie Ramazani, said: “This was a great experience. If we could do this with Red Bull every day, I would! The only thing better would be getting in the car. I love F1 and I used to play F1 games on the console when I was younger, so it was surreal to be next to a real car and race against it today. Before the race I was nervous, but I was confident too. I think we did great, but in the end the car was just too quick. One of the players involved in this idea was Dan James, unfortunately, he’s been injured at the minute, but I’d back him to try and beat this car, I think he could smoke it!”

Here’s video: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKel1SCoPoj/?hl=en

Hanger 7 –

To mark the re-opening of the iconic Red Bull Hangar-7 at Salzburg Airport, Max Verstappen drove the championship-winning RB8 in a motorsport display of excellence. For the first time, Salzburg Airport’s runway was transformed into a live-action stage to showcase various motorsport disciplines and stars – featuring demo runs, doughnuts, and a drag race. Alongside Max in the RB8, MotoGP legend Dani Pedrosa, Dakar Rally star Daniel Sanders and NASCAR driver Connor Zilisch showcased machines such as the WRC M-Sport Puma, the Dakar Ford Raptor T1+ and the KTM MotoGP Bike.

At the heart of the Red Bull Hangar-7 reopening were the people and machines that shape the brand worldwide – motorsport legends, aviation enthusiasts and talents from a variety of disciplines. The occasion showcased high-powered motorsport, an airshow by The Flying Bulls, live music, culinary highlights and performances by international Red Bull athletes. From the outset, Red Bull Hangar-7 has been a meeting place – a stage and a work of art all in one. Dietrich Mateschitz’s vision of combining art, cuisine and aviation to create an inspiring fusion is still very much palpable after the reopening.

Max said, “I’ve been quite often to Hangar-7 over my life so to me, it is a bit of a homecoming every time. There is always a lot going on at Hangar-7, a lot of cool activities – helicopters, planes, cars – motorsport and sport comes together here. It is always quite enjoyable when we can do something together across sports, and to do a drag race with all these different kinds of cars was very cool to witness.”

Here’s video: https://www.instagram.com/p/DKg2KaPo2BQ/?hl=en