Red Bull 'not interested' in selling AlphaTauri despite poor showing in 2022 F1 season

Former race driver and team owner Michael Andretti claims Red Bull are not interested in selling their sister team AlphaTauri despite their poor performances in the 2022 season. The sister team's 2022 challenger - the AT03 - showed dismal pace and reliability, leading to a frequent loss of points for Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda.

AlphaTauri ended the season in ninth place, being truly unable to grasp the new regulations and fix their poor reliability. If the Austrian team is interested in selling the Scuderia team, now would be the best opportunity as the Andretti fraternity has shown great interest in entering the sport. However, as per Michael Andretti, Red Bull has no interest in selling AlphaTauri just yet, much to the dismay of the Andretti family.

Andretti spoke about the situation with IndyStar, saying:

“No, they’re not interested. But we’re working every day (to earn clearance for their own team). I’m still confident. We’re getting close. We haven’t gotten the ‘OK’ yet, but we’re getting really close.”

2023 will be a crucial year for AlphaTauri to prove their worth after Gasly parted ways with the team at the end of the 2022 season. The Frenchman joins compatriot Esteban Ocon at Alpine for the next season. Dutchman Nyck de Vries has replaced Gasly at AlphaTauri.

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Red Bull expects Mercedes to be stronger than Ferrari in 2023

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko believes Mercedes will be a stronger opponent than Ferrari next season.

In an interview with the German publication Bild, Helmut Marko stated that Mercedes would provide Red Bull with a more significant challenge in 2023 as they were rectifying issues throughout their failing season.

Helmut Marko said:

"Ferrari is strong, but Mercedes will be stronger as a whole. Especially with a driver like Lewis Hamilton. He's still a top pilot. Although Ferrari also has a very good driver in Leclerc, he still makes mistakes."

While the Austrian and German teams were locked in an intense title battle in 2021, the Silver Arrows struggled with the new regulations this year and were unable to challenge for the title. However, Mercedes drivers pushed the car hard and registered a handful of pole positions and podium finishes.

It will be interesting to see how the 2023 championship battle develops. It is also worth keeping an eye on whether AlphaTauri will be able to help its mother team defend both their titles next year.