RB boss explains name choice

The Faenza-based operation can trace its roots back to Minardi, which first entered F1 in 1985 before becoming Toro Rosso in 2006.

It was then rebranded AlphaTauri in 2020, running under that name for four seasons before its latest change.

“The two owners, following the passing of Mr Mateschitz, had a discussion about what to do with this team,” Bayer told Speedcafe.

“So okay, we have two [teams]; one is winning world championship titles, constructors, drivers, and the other one is struggling.

“Luckily for us they very quickly came to the conclusion that they definitely wanted to keep the second team because there’s a big history, there is the state-of-the-art facilities in Italy.

“They had an idea how to improve the UK base, and they also through that having a team that prepares drivers for the top team is a very good idea.

“But then they said okay, because they obviously own the AlphaTauri clothing brand, they didn’t think that’s the right fit,” he added.

“They wanted to have come up with an identity that allows the team to stand on its own two feet, even if sponsors were to change.

“That’s where the whole idea of Racing Bulls has been born because Mr Mateschitz had that plane collection, that’s the Flying Bulls.

“Sometimes I’m not sure it makes perfect sense for a native English speaker, but that’s what it is, it’s the Flying Bulls. That’s why we are now the Racing Bulls.”

While the rebrand was confirmed during the post-season from 2023, the Racing Bulls identity was hardly a secret.

Website and trademark registrations gave the game away, even if the initially mooted Racing Bulls has been scaled back to RB.

But given its own standalone identity, rather than another Red Bull brand, the team has been able to bolt on sponsor names.

Visa and Cash App have taken joint title sponsorship, creating the much-derided Visa Cash App RB F1 Team.

Commercial realities may have been a primary reason for the name change but it also hints at a fundamental shift in how the Faenza operates.

Where once it had Red Bull money poured into it for the greater good of the sister-operation, the requirement to have it stand on its own two feet necessitates a change within its structure.

Part of that has seen a deepening of ties with Red Bull Racing as it looks to leverage that expertise, where regulations allow (a sore point for some in the paddock) while it has been recruiting and investing off-track for some time.

The investment in its UK facility is another example of its new mantra, with the Milton Keynes office being built with a view to being more attractive to staff – being based in Italy, outside of the ‘motorsport valley’ has long made it more difficult to poach talented staff from rivals.

“It’s all sort of playing out really well for us,” Bayer reasoned.

“We’re not only investing into facilities but also into the new management team, but more importantly, new technical team. [There are] Lots of people joining us.

“We’ve announced some of them already and there’s actually quite a few more to come.

“We have reshuffled internally a lot of roles and responsibilities meaning that we’ve tried to identify strengths and weaknesses of every team member and try to find their right position.

“I’ve seen some of them last year and I see the this year; I see them happier, simply because they’re back in their comfort zone.

“Last year, potentially in some areas, they were stretched and I think that’s, when we refer to a new team, that whole spirit comes with it.”