The team currently known as AlphaTauri are on the cusp of changing its name…again. The team started life in F1 as Minardi, also known as that team where Fernando Alonso made his debut in 2001.
It was then purchased by Red Bull in 2005 and it was rebranded as Toro Rosso. A few years later, in 2008, it introduced one Sebastian Vettel to the world as the young German driver won the 2008 Italian grand prix, from pole, in torrential conditions.
The team would race as Toro Rosso for a good few years before being rebranded as Scuderia AlphaTauri in 2020. This was done to promote parent company Red Bull’s fashion label of the same name. It never quite sustained a genuine competitiveness for the major placings, but it’s always been a team known for punching above their weight. This was confirmed again when Pierre Gasly emerged from the chaos of Monza to win in 2021.
Fast forward a few more years and AlphaTauri, formerly Toro Rosso, formerly Minardi, are on the cusp of more change. There are some rumours that the team is looking to return to a more generic racing name with Racing Bulls apparently being bounced around the paddock as a potential new moniker.
What is confirmed is that the entire identity of the team is set to change. New name, new logo, a complete relaunch is in the offing. The team has also confirmed that they intend to incorporate the name of two US based sponsors in the official team title.
There is also some speculation that they may return to the Toro Rosso name. But given how much money is spent on rebranding and marketing and generating fresh ideas it seems unlikely that the team would want to recycle a name and identity that’s a few decades old.
What do you think the new name might be?
