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The chatter pre-season was that the relationship between the two operations was set to drive RB, the rebranded AlphaTauri operation, to the front.
That was built off the tightening of the relationship between the two Red Bull teams, and off the back of Red Bull Racing enjoying the most dominant season in F1 history in 2023.
As it played out, that hasn’t been the case and RB has been broadly where it ended last year.
An upturn in form around the United States Grand Prix last season saw better results, and that has continued this year.
Much of that is a result of Yuki Tsunoda’s results after Daniel Ricciardo struggled in the opening rounds.
There was some bad luck and team orders involved, but there’s no hiding from the fact that Ricciardo’s Japanese team-mate was the quicker of the two for large stretches.
Such was the Australian’s form that there was speculation that he’d be dumped before the Miami Grand Prix – a fanciful notion denied by all involved.
While that was wide of the mark, it did serve to highlight the relative lack of performance that blighted his early races, and the concern that generated within the paddock.
In some ways it looked worse than it was. With RB embroiled in an especially competitive midfield, and with inconsistent results, throw in some natural variation from the drivers, and those swings can be exacerbated.
That’s not an excuse, Ricciardo is capable of better, but margins in F1 are small.
On its good days, the VCARB01 is a contender for points, though that serves only to add it to a group that contains Aston Martin, Haas, more latterly Alpine, and Williams on occasion.
Given the advantage the top four teams have, that leaves potentially 10 cars battling for ninth and 10th – three points combined.
That RB sits sixth with 34 points is therefore a commendable effort, especially when viewed against its result last year – it scored 25 points in 22 races to finish eighth in the constructors’ championship.
That upswing must, in part at least, be attributed to Ricciardo.
Despite his personal battles, the experience he offers has brought it a new element to the team, one it has never previously had.
Tsunoda himself has said that it has paid dividends, with the team also admitting that Ricciardo’s insight has changed the course of its development programme.
Awkwardly, that went awry in Spain, though that appeared a correlation issue more than a fundamental misstep.
The real problem was that it took several races to iron out, and while it was doing so, others moved forward.
Haas in particular made strong ground and, while still seven points behind RB in the constructors’ championship, it is now a serious threat for sixth in that battle.
It also shows how close it is in the midfield; one false step can be season-defining.
Even now, it’s unclear just what impact that Spanish GP mistake will have, or the missed opportunity in Hungary when a poor strategy call cost Ricciardo a shot at points.
Nonetheless, the opening half of the season has been massively encouraging for RB.
It has been of the pre-season hype and not error free, but good enough to see it become a reasonable force in the midfield.
Given that, the team is most certainly meeting the redefined ambitions Red Bull has for its second team.
