Redbull RB1 on web today.

[Gabrio]

Originally Posted by Kicking-back

Which decisions?
Saving the Jaguar team? Good decision
Hiring David Coulthard? Good decision
Putting Christian Horner in place? Time will tell.
Nothing there to warrant "diabolical".

I agree. Horner was put in charge because he worked with RB last year and won everything in F3000, so he deserves credit. As for DC, I have been told he is one of the driving forces behind the project. The team is extremely satisfied to have him on board and he is helping RBR by contacting and hiring all the high profile specialists he knows in F1. RBR are building a mega team for 2006 and I take them very seriously....

[Down F0rce]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

How are you Down FOrce do you remember me?

Should I...?

[StickShift]

Originally Posted by Kicking-back

The sponsors will be unveiled in Melbourne the week before the Grand Prix.

http://www.autosport.com/newsitem.asp?id=41865&s=5

The first Red Bull Formula 1 car will race in the livery seen in its initial tests at Jerez this week – with no additional sponsorship branding alongside the logos of its owning company.

Team boss Christian Horner says that the lack of secondary sponsors does not mean that RBR will be short of budget in 2005, as team owner Dietrich Mateschitz is making sufficient finance available through the Red Bull drinks brand.

etc.. etc...

I'm surprised that they won't even have any associated sponsors, like Michelin, whatever oil they use, Cosworth, or Pi Electronics etc...

[Glen]

Red Bull won't be able to fund the team for very long without additional deals - I think they are being pretty naive to be honest. It's not as if they can realistically expect some good, headline-grabbing, results in the first couple of races to attract interest... if anything I think interest will wane once the potential of the car is obvious (ie. not much). Not just being nasty - this is an underdeveloped, underfunded iteration of a not very good, old car. A big, big task ahead of this team, without the worry of no money coming in.

[Kicking-back]

They do have Michelin stickers on the car, but I think that's a contractural requirement.

I was just reading an interview in Autosport where one of the technical people at Red Bull says they actually have some radical features on the car.

[Glen]

Minardi claim to have radical features.

I know it is easy for me to knock the team while they are down - before they are even up at least - but it would be as well to be realistic about their prospects and not understimate the challenge. Sauber might have a few difficulties, but they should see RBR off without too much bother... Toyota will likely be even further up the front of the grid... so that leaves Minardi and Jordan to fight with, which would be ok except RBR can comfortably beat those two teams and still not get a sniff of a point. As Jaguar they at least had Webber, who managed some pretty amazing results on occasion - k-b probably disagrees, but I don't expect DC to achieve as much, especially considering Saiber are on Michlins and improving and Toyota are getting heir act together in a way that RBR can only dream of (ie with pots of cash!).

[Kicking-back]

Originally Posted by Glen

As Jaguar they at least had Webber, who managed some pretty amazing results on occasion - k-b probably disagrees, but I don't expect DC to achieve as much, especially considering Saiber are on Michlins and improving and Toyota are getting heir act together in a way that RBR can only dream of (ie with pots of cash!).

We will see.

Several observers, including Eddie Irvine, who tends not do dish out praise often, believes that in races DC will do more for the team than Webber could have done.

[Glen]

Eddie being nice to DC - that's a first! Got a link for that?

[Kicking-back]

I'm trying to find it!

In this week's Autosport magazine Eddie's saying that signing DC is "a great move for the team, but not for DC personally" - suggesting that Red Bull will get more value from David than he'll get satisfaction at their car.

[Glen]

I agree with that, k-b - much better for RBR than for DC!

I'm afraid I find it hard to believe that any F1 insider thinks a team are better off with DC than Webber - put me straight with a link by all means, but I just can't see it myself.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Glen

Eddie being nice to DC - that's a first! Got a link for that?

I haven't read it all yet, but it could be in this week's Autosport.

There are some areas where DC might move the whole team forward with his vast experience. So maybe there is something in this when compared to Webber. However there is a reason why Webber went to Williams and DC didn't.

[MRJUCY]

Its a really nice paint job but the car itself still looks very much like a Jaguar

[Gabrio]

I think DC will help RBR in many areas. He's opening a lot of doors for them in both tech and business fields. To hire him was a smart move from an intelligent entrepreneur.

[Kicking-back]

Having spoken to a journalist who was watching Jerez testing this week, Red Bull could be in for a better season that many people have been expecting.

[Glen]

Originally Posted by Kicking-back

Having spoken to a journalist who was watching Jerez testing this week, Red Bull could be in for a better season that many people have been expecting.

Do you think they can beat Toyota and Sauber, k-b?

[Kicking-back]

Toyota - on occasion possibly. The TF105 seems to have some problems with race consistency.

Sauber - impossible to tell - they've been sending out a lot of mixed messages but do seem to be struggling for ultimate pace.

Red Bull seem to be quietly notching up the miles.

[Glen]

Both of those teams have a lot more dosh, and have enjoyed more stability. The Jaguar wasn't a good car in the first place, and what RBR have now is a conservative development of that (I don't doubt that they have some nice ideas, but I do seriously doubt that they have the wherewithall to come up with a consistent point scorer of a car). I worry also about the lack of sponsorship - I fear, in my super-cynical way, that their sudden good showing of pace may be related to the lack of funding. It is fine to woo potential supporters, but the trouble is you are then wasting track time on getting headline-grabbing times just to save political face and all the time you are doing that you aren't following your proper testing programme.

Hopefully I will be proved wrong.

[JeremySmith]

Originally Posted by MRJUCY

Its a really nice paint job but the car itself still looks very much like a Jaguar

Very nice livery....A Jaguar with a new paint job. I never cared for the Jag livery myself