Home

Red Bull “Has Gone Through a Lot of Talent at a Lot of Expense” – McLaren

Published 12/24/2020, 1:19 AM EST

McLaren displayed an impressive performance this season as they finished in the top-three of the Constructors’ Championship. For any team, their young drivers’ program is an essential aspect of their talent acquisition.

Red Bull are infamous for running through drivers from their junior program. In the last two years, they have gone through two talents from their program. In 2019, Red Bull pushed Pierre Gasly out mid-season. His replacement, Alex Albon was also out of a contract after one year.

Meanwhile, McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown pointed out a key difference between their and Red Bull’s approach regarding their drivers’ academy.

Article continues below this ad

He said, “While it’s great that Red Bull has found Max, they’ve gone through a lot of talent to get there, and at a lot of expense.

“We’re paying attention to what is happening in the junior formulas. We don’t have anyone really on a junior programme at this point, because I think we wouldn’t really have a home for them,” he added.

McLaren lays out their philosophy

McLaren, Mercedes, Ferrari, and Red Bull are a few teams that have brought several drivers into Formula 1 through their junior program. Currently, two of McLaren‘s academy drivers are on the grid, Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris.

Brown pointed out that their philosophy differs from that of Red Bull or Ferrari.

Article continues below this ad

He pointed out, “I think you do run into the problem that the others have, where they have too many drivers and they start trying to place them with other teams, or they don’t have a seat available.”

According to Brown, this is exactly the scenario that McLaren tries to avoid because it’s a loss for everyone involved.

“McLaren, especially with our recent progress, will always be a team that most drivers have a high desire to drive for, especially as we continue to progress,” Brown added.

Article continues below this ad

McLaren has signed Daniel Ricciardo for 2021. Interestingly, Ricciardo was a part of Red Bull’s young driver’s program. He moved on from Red Bull towards the end of 2018 to Renault.

McLaren will hope that Ricciardo, with the learnings he gathered from his years with Red Bull and Renault, will help build on their impressive season next year.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Ayush Manjunath is a Formula 1 author for EssentiallySports with more than 500 articles to his name. A Law graduate and a current Sports Management student, Ayush also has a certificate from UCLA on Sports, Media and Entertainment Management. He has an undying love for motorsports and lives to see Max Verstappen, George Russell, Charles Leclerc, and Lando Norris battle for the championship one day!

Red Bull “Has Gone Through a Lot of Talent at a Lot of Expense” – McLaren

McLaren lays out their philosophy

Trending

Daniel Ricciardo To Be Replaced by Liam Lawson After Miami, F1 Pundit Dishes Out Harsh Verdict After Australian’s “Amateur Mistake”

Who are Zhou Guanyu’s Parents? Everything We Know About The Chinese Driver’s Family

Adrian Newey Hits Out at Climate Activist Lewis Hamilton’s Fuel Protest, Desperate to See V10 Engines Again

Taylor Swift’s Tortured Poets Department Sends F1 Fans Into a Frenzy: “Its a Fernando Reference”

Charles Leclerc: “He [Carlos Sainz] Is Fighting Me More Than Others”