'Competitors do not trust cooperation between Red Bull and AlphaTauri'

The collaboration between Red Bull Racing and AlphaTauri is causing increasing suspicion among competitors. Auto, Motor und Sport reports several statements from employees at rival teams, while there are also said to be uncertainties within Red Bull.

Toro Rosso and later AlphaTauri has always been the little brother of the big Red Bull Racing. In the early years, Toro Rosso's car was a copy of Red Bull until that was banned by the FIA. Teams had to build their own car. Those rules have been loosened somewhat in recent years. This is something that teams like Williams and Haas have benefited from by buying over some parts from Mercedes and Ferrari, respectively.

Why the competition fears Red Bull and AlphaTauri

At AlphaTauri, this has not been the case in recent years. Franz Tost and his team were pushing for more of the team's own ideas. 'They thought they knew better than Adrian Newey,' Helmut Marko jokingly said. At Red Bull, under the leadership of Oliver Mintzlaff, the focus has become more on cost efficiency and so F1 teams must also operate more efficiently.

In 2024, the helm will, therefore, change at AlphaTauri. Tost had to leave before that and, under the guidance of Peter Bayer and Laurent Mekies, the team should again make more use of the knowledge at Red Bull. This is already causing discontent among other teams. "Producing six completely new floors is beyond any cost cap," someone from another team told AMuS.

AlphaTauri came up with a lot of updates over the year. The FIA says it is keeping a close eye on Red Bull and AlphaTauri. Sharing information and knowledge is forbidden, and doing tests for the other team in the wind tunnel all the more so. The FIA, they are doing all they can to prevent this, but there are concerns at the competition.

At Red Bull, they are also wary of the competition's suspicions. "If AlphaTauri is competing for fifth place next year, there will definitely be noises that we should sell the team," a Red Bull manager told the German medium. Whether AlphaTauri can actually take that step in 2024 remains to be seen.