[PRengine]

Torro Rosso name Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne as drivers for 2012

Formula1

[soipguibbom]

Are they pay drivers ?

[PRengine]

Jean-Eric Vergne has impressed in F3 and in testing with the Torro Rosso. He may have sponsor backing but he is deserving of the ride.

Ricciardo was no surprise as he was anointed by Red Bull awhile back.

[adesseridopaw]

Wow I didn't expect both drivers to be dropped like that. Hope Jaime picks up a seat as I think we've seen flashes of his talent.

[SkHukV3N]

Quite an astonishing turnaround after recent rumours that both current STR drivers could possibly keep their seats! Like mentioned in other threads, hard decisions needed to be made and unless Red Bull felt Jaime-Buemi were the best they have got (and it wasn't the case), they needed to try something new. Probably Red Bull felt Alguersuari-Buemi were not going to be future champions, so it would be worthwhile to try out drivers with a superior junior record. The only problem is that if Ricciardo and Vergne match each other, who will be promoted to RBR? Like STR couldn't decide, whether to sack Alguersuari or Buemi, who were performing evenly, and decided to keep both of them until the end of 2011.

I have to add though that I would welcome Alguersuari back in F1, he is still very young too. He just needs to find the right team, where to hang around as a reserve driver and wait for opportunities much like de la Rosa has been doing even at a much higher age.

Also, I think these news finally confirm Trulli in the Caterham seat as well.

[forebirdo]

Interesting decision. I still don't see where the team is going, however. I mean next year they'll most likely have a similar up and down season with two inexperienced drivers. Are they going to replace the drivers again like puppets?

[SkHukV3N]

Interesting decision. I still don't see where the team is going, however. I mean next year they'll most likely have a similar up and down season with two inexperienced drivers. Are they going to replace the drivers again like puppets?

I think the crux of the matter here is that for Red Bull it is not important, where is "this team exactly going" and whether they are a bit inconsistent or not. They have their own RBR at the top, so they don't need two teams up there. Second team is fine to run solidly in the midfield and also strengthen Red Bull's position in the politics of F1 with two votes. Oh, and double amount of testing data (even if the cars are different)...

[MoreEndotte]

I thought there was an outside chance they'd drop Buemi for one of them, but I was really expecting both Buemi and Alguersuari (I still have to double check the spelling...) to start the season. Really surprised by this.

And Lehto sent to prison today too, it's not actually 1st April is it?

[U2DnBGFE]

Surprising but good decision.

Maybe JA can get the second HRT seat, with Cepsa backing?

[12dargernswearf]

The Red Bull test/reserve driver job is still open too, could be a possibility for Alguersuari or Buemi.

[imawlBoli]

Red Bull were going top buy Ricciardo the Caterham drive, they may choose to do the same for Jaime if they want to keep him around

[italertb]

I can't say that I'm too surprised. While Alguesari did a top job this year, I don't think either Buemi or Alguesari are ever going to amount to top class acts in the field.

[imawlBoli]

i'm still unsure about Alguesari, I think given a winning car he would definately win races, whether he would step up and become a contender I don't know, but he has done all of his learning since F3 in an F1 car in public, rather than running round for 2 years winning a few GP2 races or championship and he has improved an immenses amount in that time. He is quick and he is still one of the youngest guys there. I think he definately deserves a seat somewhere

[KuevDulin]

From only the other day:

Asked by sports newspaper Marca what he will have to do to replace Mark Webber at the main team for 2013, Alguersuari answered: "What do I have to do?

"According to (Red Bull driver manager) Helmut (Marko), I have to win a race with Toro Rosso. Those were his words in Japan, so I'll try.

"I have 20 races to try it and I have as good a chance as any, however small," he laughed.

Should he win the promotion, however, Alguersuari refused to predict Sebastian Vettel-style dominance at the wheel of a Red Bull.

"It's a question I cannot answer," he insisted. "We do know what would happen if Alonso was in a Red Bull, but as for myself it would be pure speculation.

"So I think it's better to say nothing.

"What I will say is that if a driver has the best car, it is because he deserves it." Make of that sentence what you will.

IMO there is no justice in having 21 year old Alguersuari without a drive and De La Rosa, Trulli, et al still taking up seats.

[SkHukV3N]

The issue with Alguersuari is that even though he impressed at times, he was still quite inconsistent. He was struggling in the first half of the season, had several bad performances in the second half too (Singapore, Japan) and was often nowhere in qualifying. I can see, why STR was looking for a change as such driver isn't really close to being a top driver and would get clearly shown up in a top team.

As for justice - what has this got to do with F1? Every team tries to reach decisions based on solutions that are most beneficial for them (they can get it wrong from time-to-time too) - perhaps that's as fair as it can be?

[VINPELA]

Jaime may well end up at HRT for the spanish team.

[itaspCatCriny]

I think the crux of the matter here is that for Red Bull it is not important, where is "this team exactly going" and whether they are a bit inconsistent or not. They have their own RBR at the top, so they don't need two teams up there. Second team is fine to run solidly in the midfield and also strengthen Red Bull's position in the politics of F1 with two votes. Oh, and double amount of testing data (even if the cars are different)...

What is the point of the Red Bull driver project though?

I don't like Jaime Alguersuari but he was evolving rapidly as a driver and at 21 had a fair bit to go. How do they determine after 2 seasons that this guy definitely will not evolve into a champion and ought to be thrown away?

I suspect they're looking for the next champion but they lost Vettel to BMW and were lucky to get him back, it doesn't seem like a very well run programme.

[SkHukV3N]

How do they determine after 2 seasons that this guy definitely will not evolve into a champion and ought to be thrown away?

I suspect they're looking for the next champion but they lost Vettel to BMW and were lucky to get him back, it doesn't seem like a very well run programme.

I can only guess, but IF Ricciardo/Vergne as total rookies were showing already more in free practices than Alguersuari after a two-year experience, then despite young age Red Bull could decide that the guys with less experience could turn out to be bigger.

Which programme is well-run? Red Bull's programme is massive, so they have a lot of drivers and not all of them can be champions. McLaren with their Hamilton experiment looks good, but if they had tens of drivers, most of them wouldn't get far. But it looks like Red Bull is also gradually learning with experience and now with a more critical evaluation they have less junior drivers than they used to have years ago. With Dan and JEV in F1, I now only know Sainz Jr, Kyvat and also Williamson in feeder series.

[amelveEnromma]

I don't like Jaime Alguersuari but he was evolving rapidly as a driver and at 21 had a fair bit to go. How do they determine after 2 seasons that this guy definitely will not evolve into a champion and ought to be thrown away?

It looks like they're looking for people like Schumacher, Alonso, Hamilton or Vettel, who impressed ever since their F1 debut, and not always in fast cars. In that case, dropping Alguersuari and Buemi was the right call to make, because they aren't that good.

That said, letting Alguersuari without a decent drive (meaning anything other than a HRT drive) for 2012 looks rather harsh, because he has pulled off some nice performances during the year. Perhaps he hasn't been consistent, but neither have some drivers who are around in better teams. And he's only two and a half seasons into his career - apparently, he has speed, but delivering consistent results usually takes more than that.

[doogiehoussi]

STR role is to train rookies, says Tost - Autoweek
Scuderia Toro Rosso boss Franz Tost says the role of his team is that of a “rookie training school.”
The decision to replace both 2011 drivers with Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne was cause for surprise in Formula One circles. However, Tost says that it is a logical one, and he insists that deposed drivers Sébastien Buemi and Jaime Alguersuari have both had their chances.


Read more: STR role is to train rookies, says Tost - Autoweek from this i would say no redbull backing for a drive with another team