Last Updated on January 30 2024, 10:45 pm

One thing the world champion Formula Team Red Bull is famous for is its ruthlessness. This was evident with their relentless push to attempt victory at every Grand Prix last season.

Yet the team is even well known for its lack of empathy towards any drivers who are underperforming. Pierre Gasly realised this when he was promoted from AlphaTauri alongside Max Verstappen for 2019. The French driver lasted until the Hungarian Grand Prix just before there summer break.

 

 

 

Gasly dropped before F1 summer break

During the Grand Prix at the Hungaroring, Gasly came home in sixth place but was lapped by his team mate and by the time the team’s returned September Pierre had been demoted to the junior team while Alex Albon was given his Red Bull racing drive.

Over the years the axe has fallen on many of the Toro Rosso drivers before their careers really took off yet surprisingly Red Bull have shown to be long suffering with their under performing Mexican driver Sergio Perez.

Perez was out of contract at the soon to be Aston Martin team but Red Bull snapped him up for the 2021 season having decided to let Albon go.

Of course that year it was all about the battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, but Perez’s failure to even score half the points of his team mate cost Red Bull their coveted fifth team title. The 28 point deficit to Mercedes at the end of the year was partially due to the fact Valtteri Bottas outscored Perez by 36 points making the silver arrows pairing the best that year.

Iconic F1 circuit now at risk

 

 

 

Perez continues to underperform

The following season saw Verstappen romp to his second title and while Red Bull won the constructors’ championship again Perez disappointed. Despite the dominance of the RB18 as demonstrated by Verstappen, Sergio failed to claim second in the drivers’ championship coming in behind Charles Leclerc in an inferior Ferrari.

Sergio appeared to be on track to put things right early last season winning two of the first four races. Then in a spectacular loss of for the Red Bull driver fell away quickly missing out on final qualifying seven times and again scoring less than half the points of his team mate.

Such was the gold between the two drivers had Verstappen only competed in the first or last eleven races he would still have beaten his team mate in identical machinery.

Speculation was rife that Perez would be benched for his fourth year and the prodigal son Daniel Ricciardo would take his place. Yet with no evidence Perez will finally up his game for the coming season, Red Bull inexplicably retained his services despite performance clauses in his contract that would allow his dismissal. So much for the reputation of being a ruthless team binning drivers prematurely. 

Africa announce new purpose built F1 circuit

 

 

 

Red Bull politics saves Checo

Of course Sergio may not last the season and given Dr. Helmet Marko’s comments in Abu Dhabi, he will be Verstappen’s team mate in 2024 but only “for now.”

Yet Checo staying at Red Bull may in fact have been a canny piece of Red Bull politics suggests F1 writer Lawrence Edmondson. The Red Bull junior team is undergoing major transformation and Dr. Marko indicated expectations were that the team compete towards the front of the grid from 2024 onwards.

Measures taken to ensure this include the now named Visa Cash App Red Bull junior team buying a significant number of parts from Red Bull rather than designing their own. Further a number of the divisions have moved to England from Italy to facilitate the recruitment of better staff who live and work in the English motorsport valley.

Of course the new sponsor Visa are paying a substantial sum for the team to be named so ridiculously and Edmondson argues it is this reason why Ricciardo was kept for now in the junior team.

“Massive change” to Red Bull junior driver programme

 

 

 

Big name Ricciardo good for Visa sponsor

“To go to the [Daniel] Ricciardo point, we talked about it a lot last season and a lot of fans I’ve seen in other places have asked in comments to other articles they’ve said well why won’t Red Bull promote Ricciardo in place of [Sergio] Perez, this is exactly why,” Edmondson tells the uncapped podcast.

“They wanted their big-name driver to lead this newly-named team and if you’re Visa, you’re coming in and they can lead very heavily on a personality like Ricciardo.”

The Australian driver is a big F1 personality and his promotion to the Red Bull senior team saw Sebastian Vettel decide it was time to head over the hills for Ferrari-land. Daniel also acquitted himself well against Verstappen in the 2 and a half seasons they raced together before he decided to try his hand in a Renault.

When McLaren let Ricciardo go mid-contract, Red Bull snapped him up in a move which looked for all the world because he was set to replace Perez. Yet even though Daniel performed well last year he remains in the junior team alongside Yuki Tsunoda and Perez inexplicable has kept his drive in the RB20.

Ferrari announces new driver(s)

 

 

 

Silly team name laughed off

“I think they can have a lot of fun about the fact that everyone hates the name. I think you’ve got a guy in there, and Yuki [Tsunoda] as well, just not caring,” adds Edmondson.

“They’ve got two great drivers to deal with that situation if that makes sense, in terms of the media. Once we’re into the season, I think those two guys will be really key.”

“It’s hard to dislike those two guys and I think that’s really going to help the team out because people are going to say, the team sucks but I still really like the drivers.

Andretti poaches from Red Bull

 

 

 

Perez future still uncertain

“Keeping Ricciardo in and hoping Ricciardo with a full season under his belt is good again as he was a few years back.”

Yet the reality is should either McLaren or Ferrari come out of the blocks hot on the heels of Red Bull Racing, perez will have to deliver or he will be gone before the European season begins and Ricciardo will be back alongside Verstappen.

Even so Edmondson’s theory will have worked given the car launch and early races with Ricciardo should give Visa the exposure they require. Further if the car is as good as CEO Peter Bayer expects and they are challenging Alpine for fifth, Visa will be happy regardless of who the drivers are.

READ MORE: Insider rumour Hamilton to hang his helmet in 2025