Red Bull junior drivers, Enzo Fittipaldi and Zane Maloney will not be supported by Red Bull next year.
That’s according to Rodin Carlin CEO, David Dicker, who has managed the pair in F2 this season.
Fittipaldi is currently 7th in the standings while Maloney sits 10th respectively.
They have famously brought through a number of Red Bull junior drivers with Liam Lawson driving for the team in 2022.
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When discussing the matter David Dicker said:
“The support for most of these guys in the junior teams is next to zero, from the information that I have,”
“They’re not going to be supported by Red Bull next year,”
“Red Bull already have more good drivers than seats, so what’s the point of trying?”
It’s a damning indictment of what has been one of the most successful driver programmes in the sports history.
The team won the F2 teams’ title in 2018 with Sérgio Sette Câmara and a certain Lando Norris at the helm.
Since then the most notable addition to the Formula 1 grid has been Yuki Tsunoda.
He finished in 3rd in the Drivers Championship in 2020 picking up three wins along the way.
The end of the conveyer belt?
Red Bull have excelled in continuing to bring through the next generation of talent.
Since Sebastian Vettel’s meteoric rise to fame in the mid-2000s they have prioritised finding the next starlet to go alongside an experienced driver.
There have been successes like Daniel Ricciardo, Carlos Sainz and Alex Albon.
Meanwhile, there have also been failures like Sébastien Bourdais and Jaime Alguersuari.
Its fair to say that its impossible to get it right every time, but Red Bull have generally done a good job.
The issue in recent years has been fitting all these drivers in.
Pierre Gasly now drives for Alpine while Alex Albon is excelling at Williams. Both are talented drivers but Red Bull had to let them go as they just don’t have the seats available.
That’s even with Alpha Tauri being rebranded once again in 2024 as it falls back under Red Bull control.
This decision may be connected to this conundrum. The team are currently dominating both categories in F1 with Max Verstappen cruising to his third consecutive WDC.
While Sergio Perez poses obvious question marks for the future there is enough talent in the current stable to promote from within.
Looking outside the stable
That is without looking at other teams as well.
The Red Bull is notoriously tricky to drive but no driver would pass up the opportunity to work with Horner, Newey and Co.
They are a well-oiled machine who have consistently produced a good car.
One of the current top dogs – Hamilton, Leclerc, even Alonso – would be tempted to have a crack at the Red Bull for a year or two.
It means the team will not be short of options no matter which way they look.
For now, they may not feel it is necessary to invest so much into the future when the present looks so bright.
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