Red Bull

Red Bull Racing entered Formula 1 in 2005 when the energy-drink company bought the former Jaguar team. What began as a marketing play quickly became a serious sporting force under team principal Christian Horner and the genius of designer Adrian Newey, who joined from McLaren and produced a succession of championship-winning cars.

The team's first golden era arrived between 2010 and 2013, when Sebastian Vettel won four consecutive drivers' titles and Red Bull took four straight constructors' championships, the German becoming the youngest quadruple champion in history. After the hybrid regulations briefly checked their momentum, Red Bull surged back with Max Verstappen, whose dramatic 2021 title fight with Lewis Hamilton was followed by a period of crushing dominance, including a 2023 campaign in which the team won 21 of 22 races.

Red Bull also pioneered the modern junior-team model, using sister squad Toro Rosso to develop talent, most notably Verstappen himself, who was promoted to the senior team early in 2016 and won on his debut for them.

Red Bull brought a bold, irreverent energy to Formula 1 and backed it with serious engineering substance. By marrying marketing flair to Adrian Newey's aerodynamic mastery and a fearless driver-development programme, it turned an outsider's gamble into one of the most successful teams of the modern era, proving that a drinks brand could beat the sport's historic manufacturers at their own game.