What is the Red Bull Junior Team? A look at the unique F1 academy

Almost half of the Formula 1 grid in 2025 will have come from the Red Bull Junior Team, making it one of the most successful academy programmes in motorsport.

What is the Red Bull Junior Team?

The Red Bull Junior Team is a driver development programme operated by Austrian conglomerate Red Bull GmbH, best known for its energy drinks brand, and headed by motorsport advisor Helmut Marko. 

It was officially founded in 2001 with the aim of signing and developing young racing drivers, so that they are capable of establishing successful careers within the industry. 

This entails Red Bull identifying drivers from Formula 2 right down to karting to fund and support their progression through the open-wheel ranks with aspirations of eventually getting to F1.

Red Bull made its F1 debut in 2005 after the company purchased Jaguar Racing and thus took over its Milton Keynes base.

It was not a stellar debut year for Red Bull as it finished seventh in the championship, but the following season saw the company expand its presence on the grid.

That’s because Red Bull bought the uncompetitive Minardi, an Italian squad that had been in F1 from 1985 to 2005. 

The company rebranded the team as Toro Rosso – which is ‘Red Bull’ in Italian – to serve as Red Bull’s junior squad in F1.

So, whenever a Red Bull junior driver has made their F1 debut, it has usually come with the Faenza-based squad and impressive form has then been rewarded with a promotion to the ‘A’ team.

Race winner Sebastian Vettel, Toro Rosso

Photo by: Sutton Images

Throughout the many rebrands, however, its sister outfit has become one of F1’s most successful teams in history.

Red Bull has won eight drivers’ world championships (Vettel, 2010-13, and Verstappen, 2021-24) and six constructors’ titles (2010-13, 2022-23) while breaking many records like most victories in a season (21), most consecutive wins (15) and most points in a campaign (860). 

But not every Red Bull junior will reach F1, as many graduates of the programme are contesting other forms of motorsport whether it is the World Endurance Championship, IndyCar or even DTM. 

Which F1 drivers have graduated from the Red Bull Junior Team?

Hadjar will become the 17th F1 driver to have graduated from the Red Bull junior system when he makes his series debut in 2025.

The 20-year-old will partner Tsunoda at Racing Bulls after Lawson was promoted from the Italian outfit to become Verstappen’s team-mate next season.

Red Bull has a long history of signing drivers from its sister squad, with Vettel the first to make that jump in 2009 shortly after winning the 2008 Italian Grand Prix.

Daniel Ricciardo, Red Bull Racing RB10

Photo by: Daniel Kalisz

Given Vettel and Verstappen have each claimed four F1 world championships with Red Bull, while Ricciardo won seven grands prix with the Austrian squad, the programme has many success stories. 

But it is also a very cut-throat programme. Should a driver not immediately perform well, their future within the system becomes under question.

Gasly, for example, moved to Red Bull in 2019 after a season and a quarter with Toro Rosso. But, the Frenchman was demoted back to the ‘B’ team after just 12 grands prix having struggled against Verstappen.

His successor did not fare much better either. Albon was promoted midway through his rookie year, but he was dropped from the ‘A’ team after just a season and a half.

That followed a very disappointing 2020 campaign where Albon finished seventh in the championship and 109 points behind Verstappen, who was third.

Alexander Albon, Toro Rosso

Photo by: Jerry Andre / Motorsport Images

Sebastien Buemi, for example, has become a four-time winner of the WEC after his three-year stint with Toro Rosso.

Ayumu Iwasa, meanwhile, is a Red Bull junior in the Super Formula championship and IndyCar’s Callum Ilott spent 2015 in the programme – yet neither have started a grand prix.

However, his prior team Racing Point, opted to replace him with Vettel for 2021 meaning Perez was without a drive despite finishing a then career-equalling best of fourth in the championship.

So, considering Albon’s struggles, Red Bull swiftly signed the free agent Perez shortly after the 2020 Abu Dhabi season finale given that at the time it did not have any junior drivers capable of replacing the Thai-Briton.

Nyck de Vries, AlphaTauri AT04

Photo by: Erik Junius

Who are the current drivers in the Red Bull Junior Team?

There are 16 drivers who are currently in the Red Bull Junior Team starting with Iwasa, who recently finished fifth in the 2024 Super Formula championship.

The 23-year-old joined the system in 2021, where he subsequently made his F3 debut before a promotion to F2 just the following season. Iwasa then spent two years in F2, scoring five wins and a best finish of fourth in the 2023 standings before returning to his native country to contest Japan’s top single-seater series.

Iwasa also made his F1 session debut in 2024, as he drove for RB in first practice at the Japanese GP. 

Other current members of the programme include Pepe Marti, who became an F2 race winner in 2024, while Arvid Lindblad will make his series debut in 2025 having recently finished fourth in the F3 championship as a rookie.

Nikola Tsolov and Niklas Schaufler will also join the Red Bull junior programme in 2025.