Red Bull Racing’s Formula 1 car on the Madrid Underground!

When a racing driver drives ‘as if on rails’, it means that he is driving precisely, confidently and without making any mistakes, and that his car is holding the track perfectly, without skidding or spinning out. Max Verstappen used this phrase frequently, particularly during the 2022 and 2023 seasons, to describe the smoothness of his Red Bull Racing car. In 2024, after the race in China, he said: “We were quick all weekend; it was a joy to drive here. The car was like it was on rails; I could do whatever I wanted. Race weekends like that are rare.”

The RB8 on rails, rather than on tarmac!

At Verstappen’s team, Red Bull Racing, they’ve now taken the idea of the car and the rails quite literally in a wild stunt: Ahead of the Formula 1 race debut in Madrid, Red Bull took the RB8 – the 2012 season’s race car – onto the tracks of the Madrid metro. A world-championship-winning ride, then: it was in the RB8 that Sebastian Vettel became Drivers’ World Champion and Red Bull Racing Constructors’ World Champion.

Patrick Friesacher fuhr den RB8 über die Schienen der U-Bahn von Madrid

Foto: Red Bull Content Pool

For the stunt, the Formula 1 racer was fitted with metal wheels weighing 29.8 kilograms (roughly twice as much as a standard Formula 1 wheel). These special wheels were custom-made specifically to get the RB8 onto the tracks of the Madrid metro. The preparations took half a year, with a large team of engineers working out how to get the car onto the tracks without damaging sensitive components such as the suspension.

Friesacher on the move in the underground tunnel

At the wheel of the rail-ready vehicle was former F1 driver Patrick Friesacher (11 GPs). Friesacher drove the RB8 – which had been converted for rail use – along real tracks on the Madrid Metro (though in a cordoned-off area), passing Estadio Metropolitano station and two depots along the way.

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‘A surreal experience’

Friesacher: “That was an incredible experience. I’ve already been lucky enough to have had many adventures with the Heritage Team, but driving a Formula 1 car on rails – that was simply surreal. It’s really cool to be able to add ‘metro driver’ to my CV.”

Red Bull Racing brachte vor dem Madrid-Rennen den RB8 auf Schienen

Foto: Red Bull Content Pool

After 45 years, Formula 1 is returning to Madrid this week and, for the first time, will race on the newly created ‘Madring’ circuit in the north-east of the Spanish capital, near Barajas Airport, on an exhibition site. From there, it is just over four kilometres as the crow flies to Friesacher’s metro route. The stunt is the result of a partnership between Red Bull and Madring, as well as a collaboration with the Madrid Metro – after all, most fans are likely to travel to the circuit by metro during the race weekend.