F1 boss confirms Red Bull sale talks

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F1 boss confirms Red Bull sale talks

Red Bull have raced in F1 since 2005 and purchased their sister team for the 2006 season

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Thursday 23 April 2026 21:57

According to an F1 boss there were discussions in the latest Concorde Agreement that Red Bull could be potentially forced to sell off sister team Racing Bulls.

Red Bull purchased the former Minardi squad in 2005, and in 2006, the Faenza-based team was rebranded Toro Rosso, later becoming Alpha Tauri, Visa Cash App Racing Bulls and now Racing Bulls.

Since their inception, the second Red Bull team have acted as a sister squad, used as a testing ground for young driver talent, and occasionally to a sporting advantage.

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At the 2024 Singapore Grand Prix, Daniel Ricciardo took the fastest lap point from McLaren to help Red Bull driver Max Verstappen in the championship fight - a tactic that McLaren CEO Zak Brown was not best pleased with.

Brown has been the most vocal opponent against a Red Bull sister team, and with reports suggesting that Mercedes could purchase the 24 per cent stake in Alpine (currently owned by Otro Capital), he warned another B-team on the grid would be a mistake.

Brown against Mercedes Alpine B-Team

As per The Race, Brown also revealed that during the latest Concorde Agreement discussions, the idea that Red Bull would have to sell their sister team had been floated.

"There were discussions in the Concorde Agreement about should, over time, one of the [Red Bull] teams be divested," he said.

"But I also have a huge appreciation for what they've done for the sport and how that was done a long time ago.

Then referring to a potential purchase of Mercedes from Alpine, he continued: "So I think as long as it's managed and watched [the Red Bull situation is okay]. But certainly adding to it, I think would be a mistake for the sport."

"In today's day and age if that's permitted, I think it runs a real high risk of compromising the integrity of sporting fairness. And what would turn fans off is if they don't feel like there's 11 independent racing teams.

"I've been vocal about it from day one. We've seen it play out on track in a sporting way, with Daniel Ricciardo taking the fastest lap point away from us to help the other team."

"We've seen employees move overnight [between affiliated teams], where we either have to wait and sometimes make financial deals, which then impacts us in the cost cap.

"So when you see other teams that move from one to the other and then also without financial compensation, that's an unfair financial advantage. That's an unfair sporting advantage.

"We've seen Ferrari and Haas move people back and forth, and we know with IP (intellectual property) there's a lot in your head with that."