Why does Red Bull have 2 F1 racing teams? Real reason behind Toro Rosso and Red Bull Racing competing together

It is no secret that Red Bull has more than one racing team in Formula 1. AlphaTauri is often referred to as the sister team to the Bulls. The story of having two F1 teams goes way back to 2005, when the Bulls initially entered the sport.

Jaguar, a team that raced in F1 earlier, was bought by the Austrian energy drink brand, Red Bull. After their financial success and upholding, they also managed to buy Minardi and renamed it Toro Rosso, which means Red Bull in Italian, compensating for the fact that they are an Italian team.

Having two teams running with almost the same livery (and name) in a single sport helped the brand in promoting their product. The large Red Bull logos on the car and the blue paint were sure to highlight the brand, but were not expected to challenge the top sitters.

However, this changed when they dominated the sport from 2010 to 2013 with Sebastian Vettel behind the wheel, winning all the championships during those four years. That era of dominance has recently been returning with Max Verstappen as he won two consecutive world titles (2021 & 2022).

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Why did AlphaTauri (Toro Rosso) battle with Red Bull on the track?

Although the two teams are from the same owners, they have had their share of battling on the track. However, Toro Rosso have been much slower and less competitive than Red Bull.

Toro Rosso was renamed Scuderia AlphaTauri in 2020, to promote the brand's fashion line, which was again a major success for them. AlphaTauri is their official fashion brand which has seen higher sales since the team was renamed.

Having two teams under the same brand has helped the brand grow a lot, and at the same time, it has helped Red Bull to have a much more successful time in the sport. This is because any junior driver from Formula 2 or an even smaller team gets a seat for AlphaTauri, their potential is tested, and if they are good enough, they see their time with the Bulls.

This happened to Max Verstappen when he debuted in F1 with Toro Rosso in 2016 and also with Sebastian Vettel. Both drivers spent enough time with the junior team before moving to the Bulls.

However, the team has also demoted drivers in the past. Pierre Gasly was given a chance to drive with Red Bull in 2019, but his poor performance saw him move back to Toro Rosso, and he has been with AlphaTauri ever since. He managed to win the 2020 Italian Grand Prix with the team, but that has been his latest victory so far.

The Frenchman was recently offered a contract in Alpine, which he accepted, and Nyck de Vries, a former Formula E driver who raced in Williams as a replacement for Alex Albon, has been offered a seat in AlphaTauri and will be racing alongside Yuki Tsunoda in the upcoming season. Perhaps either of them could get a seat with the Bulls in the future.