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.

 

[Brogan]

An interesting article (in German) on the Red Bull exhaust and how it has apparently been designed around Vettel's driving/preference, at the expense of Webber.

http://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/...-setzt-weiter-auf-vettel-auspuff-6655833.html

 

[F1ang-o]

No change there then...

 

[RasputinLives]

To be fair I kind of think an F1 team should build its car to suit its best driver. If it was even close then they would be some debate but Webber hss been put to the sword. Makes sense to back Seb and get the car suited to him. Worked for Schumie and I'm pretty sure its what Lewis has gone to Merc for.

 

[Brogan]

I'm pretty sure its what Lewis has gone to Merc for.

Off topic but Brawn, Hamilton and Rosberg have all stated that both drivers are equal.

 

[Josh]

Isn't that exactly what Red Bull says as well?

 

[F1ang-o]

I've never seen anything saying that Seb has asked for equality at Red Bull.....

 

[RasputinLives]

Why would he?

"Please Mr Newy don't design the car to suit me. Give that aussie bloke a chance"

and I don't think for a second Lewis or any other driver would be saying that either. Its the name of the game.

 

[RasputinLives]

And just to clarify Lewis hasn't gone to the board of directors and asked them to make Nico equal before he gets painted a saint.

He used to say him and Kovi were equal too. Alonso says him and Massa are equals as well.

 

[Brogan]

And just to clarify Lewis hasn't gone to the board of directors and asked them to make Nico equal

Umm, he did exactly that.

Go and search out the quotes from all three when the deal was announced.

http://en.espnf1.com/mercedes/motorsport/story/90330.html

Anyway, this is all off topic and irrelevant to this thread.

 

[RasputinLives]

Blimey. Its all a bit David Coulthard. I don't know whether to tip my hat to him or face palm him giving his team mate the chance to beat him.

Back on topic: I think its only logical to design your car to fit your best driver so I can't really see an issue with it really. Your not telling me tjis years Ferrari, Mclaren and the car from Enstone aren't specifically designed to suit Alonso, Jenson and Kimi are you?

Actually knowing Mclarens logic they've prob designed this years car to suit Lewis.

 

[ZakspeedYakspeed]

Sheesh... given that that Red Bull has been designed for Vettel since he came to the team... amazing job that that Aussie bloke has actually won a hatful of races and was in the WDC hunt a few years back.....

 

[Bill Boddy]

Yes, that got Red Bull worried for a time....

 

[Brogan]

Back on topic: I think its only logical to design your car to fit your best driver so I can't really see an issue with it really.

Agreed.
I've been saying for years that if McLaren want to compete on equal terms with Red Bull and Ferrari then they need to do exactly that.

Your not telling me tjis years Ferrari, Mclaren and the car from Enstone aren't specifically designed to suit Alonso, Jenson and Kimi are you?

I have no doubt that McLaren will finally (have been doing since last year) do that now; Button has made no attempt to hide the fact that he has been "moudling the team around him", in his own words.

 

[Jen]

Has to make you wonder why there are two drivers in the mix.

 

[RasputinLives]

Jen I'm not saying delib pay no attention to the second driver and do nothing to help him I'm just saying if there are two ways to go on a design and one driver prefers one and the other the other then go the way of your best driver and then do your best to help the other adapt to it. Its not as simple as dismissing your other driver as no hoper its just called playing the per centages. Now if Webber had put a case in that he was the more likely challenger thn Seb or even that he was close on his tail then I'd say otherwise but despite what some try to tell you for the last two years for the most he's been very much adrift.

I think if an article came out saying Red Bull weren't trying to design their car to suite Vettel the majority of people would think they were off their rocker.

 

[Jen]

My point was, if you have two drivers you have to make the car able to be driven by both drivers - equally successfully, hopefully. If it is built with only one in mind then it is a pointless operation to have two because the second doesn't stand a chance and is, basically, redundant - unless he is exceptional (which in itself isn't an option, realistically). So the question is why a two car team?

 

[Kewee]

Maybe it's time for those that have been critics of Webber to give him some credit for the results he achieves driving a car that has one of it's most important performance features designed to suit his teammates driving preferences. Considering just a subtile change to a car can make a huge difference for any driver, regardless of talent, Webber's season is compromised before his car even turns a wheel.

 

[Jen]

I have always thought highly of Webber, whether as a driver or a man. He has had a bum deal from RBR and would like to think that he would walk away from such an enterprise - but he is a racer with a very short life span, so is stuck with the unedifying crap dished out to him. Not his finest hour which is really quite sad.

 

[teabagyokel]

If you're Red Bull and you'd decided in 2009 not to put all your eggs in the basket marked Vettel, then at least you're more familiar with the phrase "Four-time World Champion Fernando Alonso" than Christian Horner is.

 

[Kewee]

"Four-time World Champion Fernando Alonso" .

That phrase is being saved until the end of 2014.