Former Red Bull talent picked up by a different F1 team: 'Feel honoured'

Zane Maloney will become a reserve driver for the Stake F1 Team in 2024. In the coming season, he will also participate in the Sauber Academy training programme. The former Red Bull Racing junior will share his duties as reserve driver with 2023 Formula 2 champion Theo Pourchaire.

Former Red Bull junior to Sauber

Maloney, who is preparing for his second F2 season with Rodin Motorsport, finished his first season tenth in the drivers' championship with four podium finishes to his name. Before that, he drove in Formula 3, where he competed for the title and won three races in 2022. In the end, he just missed out on the title by five points.

The 20-year-old driver from Barbados was dropped from the Red Bull Junior Team by Helmut Marko at the end of 2023. He is happy to be given a chance with another F1 team: "I am honoured to join the Sauber Academy, and to take on the role of one of Stake F1 Team’s Reserve Drivers," he said in a statement.

"The Sauber name resonates with Formula 1, as it has been part of the sport for over thirty years, paving the way for so many drivers who went on to achieve great success. I am pleased to become part of this family, and I am looking forward to working together this season, as I move closer to my goal of becoming a Formula 1 driver."