In other words, putting Ricciardo in the car is not just a case of short-term expediency and giving the Australian a chance to get up to speed ahead of a potential return to the main Red Bull team.
The change of direction is part of a reboot for AlphaTauri after a detailed analysis of its role within in the Red Bull camp, and a firm decision from the drinks company’s top management not to sell it.
It’s also tied to a change of identity that is coming for next season after the end of the current sponsorship deal with AlphaTauri.
Speaking to Autosport before Ricciardo’s replacement of de Vries was confirmed, new AlphaTauri CEO Peter Bayer indicated that a blend of youth and experience is now seen as the way forward.
“It makes perfect sense to have that younger brother within the family, who's taking care of young driver development,” said Bayer.
“That will stay, so the purpose will remain, for us to find young talent. We might extend that a bit, and go a bit more structured into these areas.
“It's also currently being discussed whether that means that we have to run two young drivers, or that we will finally one day have a more experienced one with a younger one, which I find makes it very interesting, in terms of the global product.”
Bayer, who will work alongside new team principal Laurent Mekies when the Frenchman is free of Ferrari and can replace Franz Tost, acknowledged that there was also the obvious issue of the team needing to score more points on a consistent basis.
AlphaTauri is currently last in the constructors’ championship with just two points earned by Yuki Tsunoda for a pair of 10th places.
Source: Autosport