Current Red Bull Racing

Red Bull Racing

FIA Entry: Red Bull Racing Renault
Car 1: Sebastien Vettel
Car 2: Mark Webber
Engine: Renault V8
Team Owner: Dietrich Mateschitz
Team Principal: Christian Horner
Chief Technical: Office Adrian Newey
Chief Designer: Rob Marshall
Race Engineer Car 1: Guillaume “Rocky” Rocquelin
Race Engineer Car 2: Ciaron Pilbeam

Stats as of end 2010

First Entered 2005
Races Entered 107
Race Wins 15
Pole Positions 20
Fastest Laps 12
Driver World Championships 1
Constructor World Championships 1

Team History

Before Red Bull

In 1997 Paul Stewart, aided by his father Jackie and the Ford Motor Company, made the leap from F3000 to F1 as an entrant. Jonny Herbert won 1 race for the Stewart team before it was sold off to Ford who re-branded the cars as Jaguar.

Ford stuck with it through thick and thin (mainly thin) through to the end of 2004 before selling the team to Dietrich Mateschitz, who owns the Red Bull drinks brand, for $1 on the understanding he invested $400 million over 3 years

Red Bull Racing

With Christian Horner installed as team principal, McLaren refugee David Coulthard and Christian Klien as the drivers Red Bull went racing. Their first season was certainly more successful than Jaguar had managed, even with the same Cosworth power plant, with Coulthard managing a 4th place at the European Grand Prix and the team finishing 7th in the Constructors Championship.

Adrian Newey joined from McLaren as chief designer for 2006 and Red Bull swapped to Ferrari engines. Coulthard managed a podium at his "home" race in Monaco prompting Christian Horner to jump naked, other than wearing a red cape, into a swimming pool.

Christian Klien, who shared the car with Vitantonio Liuzzi in 2005 and Robert Doornbos in 2006, departed the team for 2007 and was replaced by Mark Webber. The RB3 was the first full "Newey" car and was coupled with a Renault motor. The car was very unreliable, suffering from a variety of different problems but Webber managed a podium at the European Grand Prix and the team finished 5th in the WCC.

Retaining the same engine and drivers for 2008 Red Bull slipped back to 7th in the WCC and again only managed a single podium, for Coulthard in Canada, but the reliability issues which plagued the car the previous season were mainly resolved.

2009 was Red Bull's break through year. With Coulthard having retired Webber was joined by Red Bull junior driver Sebastien Vettel. The new rules allowed Newey to design a car which challenged for both the Drivers and Constructors Championship. Webber won 2 races, Vettel 4 and the team climbed to 2nd in WCC taking 3 pole positions en-route.

In 2010 Red Bull justified Mateschitz's investment winning the Constructors title and Vettel the Drivers Championship. They won 9 races through the season, 5 for Vettel and 4 for Webber and took 10 poles. Webber led the title race for much of the season but it was the 23 year old Vettel who stole the title in the last race of the season and became the youngest Champion as a result.

2011 sees the team retain the same driver line up as 2010 and continue with Renault engine power in the new RB7 car.

 

[Il_leone]

A can of Red Bull is probably a good thing when you're driving around MOnaco and needing to stay awake

 

[ExtremeNinja]

You mean when you are watching people drive round Monaco, surely. Monaco may not produce a great spectator race, but it's still one of the great driver challenges.

 

[Il_leone]

Speaking of energy drinks now Monster are being investigated after a few kids had one too many cans and died ... that use to be the same argument about too many REd Bulls

 

[ExtremeNinja]

That Newey fella is a clever old bloke, isn't he?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/20118852

After three years trouncing the competition with Red Bull, it would be nice to see him go elsewhere for a new challenge. Even if just to mix things up a bit. I would say that the sport needs it. He has got Red Bull to the front and kept them there. If I were in his shoes I would be bored of that by now and looking for something else to sink my teeth into.

 

[Il_leone]

ExtremeNinja

Newey did this once already though from taking Red Bull from a midfield team to a front runner

The only challenge more difficult to overcome is try and bring one of the back of the grid teams to the front....

 

[Jen]

Newey to HRT next season then - you heard it here first folks!!

 

[ExtremeNinja]

Il_leone

He won't go anywhere that cannot afford to implement his designs. The lowly teams could neither afford him nor provide and attractive platform. There is little more for him to achieve that he hasn't already at Red Bull. If he were to move in line with the change in technical regs then he could have a blank canvas to work on. Couple that with a new environment and he would have a fantastically exciting new set of challenges on his hands at any team. Sure, he'll get that at Red Bull, but for him to go to another team under those circumstances and make a success of it then he would be adding considerably to his historical legacy.

 

[Galahad]

Here's Newey on the decision to ban all the 'gizmos' at the end of 1993 (his Williams team suffered most from the decision) in this month's Motor Sport magazine:

"Unfortunately it was a case of 'Ferrari International Aid'. Ferrari and the FIA got together, and it was the usual Ferrari modus operandi: if they couldn't get something to work they got it banned"​

​

Interestingly, he was first approached by Maranello in 1986. I truly cannot see him deciding to relocate to Italy at this point in his career - if not before, why now?​

 

[The Artist.....]

Personally, I can't see Newey moving to another team after Red Bull - essentially this is now his team - he's never had the level of control as he does now.... The only place I could see him going to is designing yachts - but probably for Red Bull yachting

 

[Olivier]

Here's Newey on the decision to ban all the 'gizmos' at the end of 1993 (his Williams team suffered most from the decision) in this month's Motor Sport magazine:

"Unfortunately it was a case of 'Ferrari International Aid'. Ferrari and the FIA got together, and it was the usual Ferrari modus operandi: if they couldn't get something to work they got it banned"

Interestingly, he was first approached by Maranello in 1986. I truly cannot see him deciding to relocate to Italy at this point in his career - if not before, why now?

It is ironic that the team most benefited by the ban was Benetton that it's been said had the 'gizmos' but tucked away so that nobody could find them. As well if the ban was indeed orchestrated by Ferrari, it didn't really worked out for them. It took them another 7 years to win the WDC again.

 

[Brogan]

So...it would appear McLaren aren't the only team who screw up by under-fuelling one of their drivers in qualifying.

 

[Galahad]

But they're the only ones that do it deliberately, Brogan.

 

[KekeTheKing]

McLaren aren't the only team who screw up

But they also gave the game away on the radio immediately after the fact. Horner would still have you believe that there's ample fuel somewhere inside the car to test.

McLaren are definitely a team that is "presumed guilty" and RBR seems to still be given the benefit of the doubt, but I certainly know who I'd want arguing for my cause.

 

[teabagyokel]

KekeTheKing - If there is ample fuel inside the car to test, then they could get a two race ban like BAR!

Looking forward to that!

 

[KekeTheKing]

The mysteries never cease at RBR!

 

[Brogan]

Red Bull have to be annoyed with Webber today - he only needed to get four points and they would have been triple WCC.

Undoubtedly they are going to get that with two races to go but I suspect they would have liked to have done it today.

 

[Galahad]

Watching Horner on the BBC after the race, while he didn't condemn, he didn't attempt to defend Webber's driving either. Most unlike his usual stance, in fact.

 

[Bill Boddy]

Yes, teabagyokel I was pondering on that. It does sound like to get all the fuel out they have to start removing bodywork,, I wonder if the scrutineers watch them do this just to be sure.

Mind you, this time there is no-one running RBR that the President of the FIA is rumoured to have a grudge against.

 

[Viscount]

Despite driving for Red Bull (as a reward for winning Formula Renault 3.5) on Thursday and driving for Sauber today, Frijns doesn't sound like he much of a fan of the Red Bull team.

http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/frijns-i-twice-said-no-to-red-bull/

I know their games.
You cannot decide what you want to do, and if you don't do what they want, you're out.
They treat you like a dog.
In my career I've always made my own choices and I want to continue to do that.
I need people around me who I can trust, and so Red Bull is not for me, even though I have won more than Vettel did before he made his name in formula one.

 

[Josh]

He has denied saying that.