For the freshest (and perhaps most promising) faces in NASCAR, one need look no further than Team Red Bull. Perhaps no team has put forward an image with their drivers that more closely fits the brand of the company sponsoring them. In your minds eye, you can just see A.J. Allmendinger chugging a can of the energy drink in victory lane. Their colorful paint schemes that feature red wheels gives them high visibility on the track. Now the drivers just need to back it up with wins to complete the effect.
For drivers Brian Vickers and A.J. Allmendinger is the good news that this team already know a thing or two about motorsports though they are NASCAR neophytes. Red Bull already operates two Formula One teams and has involvement with Indy Car and Champ Car teams and/or drivers.
Of the two young drivers in the Red Bull shop, Brian Vickers seems poised for the more immediate impact. The 24 year old has been racing Cup full-time since 2004, and has seen what it’s like with a premier NASCAR team as Vickers drove 3 seasons for Rick Hendrick in the ride now occupied by Casey Mears. Vickers has already tasted victory in his former ride, the #25 Chevy at the Fall, 2006 Talladega race.
In 2007, Vickers was the first Toyota driver to lead laps in Cup competition. In fact, Vickers looked like a strong possibility to win the Coca-Cola 600 before gradually tapering off as the race went, an all-too-common malady for the manufacturer in 2007. Like teammate A.J. Allmendinger, Vickers has some moments of greatness in 2007 and seems to have the aggressiveness to win with the big boys. After all, it was Vickers who bumped his then-teammate Jimmie Johnson into Dael Earnhardt Jr. to get that Talladega win. Anyone Familiar with Hendrick Motorsports knows that’s not only a very gutsy move, but one that will likely spell your departure from the “all for one, one for all” mentality at HMS. Look for continued improvement from the North Carolinian who once boasted a high school GPA of 4.43.
Though Vickers has a load of potential, perhaps the driver with the greatest upside is A.J. Allmendinger. I like this guy. Like another promising young driver by the name of Kyle Busch, Allmendinger will push his car right to the point of losing control of it. The 2nd year Cup driver has tasted success in other motorsports- Allmendinger finished 5th in Champ Car points in 2005. In 2006, the Los Gatos, California native won a Champ Car race at Portland. In 2004, Allmendinger was rookie of the year for Champ Car. Allmendinger has tested very well in the 2008 pre-season.
This is definitely a team on the rise, sponsored by an organization that seems committed to success as a motorsports sponsor. They’re not afraid of change as Red Bull replaced Vickers’ veteran crew chief Doug Richert with Randy Cox in an effort to find a winning fit.
For Team Red Bull and owner Deitrich Mateschitz, it’s just a matter of getting the equipment and team personnel up to the level of the drivers.
