New AlphaTauri F1 name leak suggests end of 'Racing Bulls' title

The Faenza-based squad has been open that it will race with a new team name in 2024, as part of a reinvigoration undertaken by owner Red Bull.

It wanted to move away from the AlphaTauri name, which is a clothing company owned by Red Bull, and embark on a different path.

There had been anticipation of the new identity revolving around 'Racing Bulls', which would work well alongside sister team Red Bull Racing, and would also allow it to incorporate potential title sponsors.

Speaking last year about the plan, AlphaTauri CEO Peter Bayer said: "The identity will be generic.

"The identity is what Toro Rosso would have been, and it's moving closer to the Red Bull family again. But then it will appear with the naming rights partners. We will change the company name, we will change identity, logo, everything, a complete relaunch, complete rebrand."

However, as it closes in on an official announcement about what its new identity will be, leaks of its new name on official team accounts suggest a final decision has been made that does not involve 'Racing Bulls' at all.

Instead,'Visa Cash App RB' appeared briefly this week as a handle on official team accounts, before disappearing. It is likely to have accidentally gone public as part of the team's efforts to get its brand identity ready to go live in time for any formal announcement.

It is understood that the choice of RB at the end, rather than Racing Bulls, is final, and is what will be used for the team name, which is expected to be confirmed prior to an official launch next month.

The official entry list that was issued in December had 'RB' featured in both the team and chassis name.

Photo by: Mark Sutton

Nyck de Vries, AlphaTauri AT04, leads Sergio Perez, Red Bull Racing RB19

The presence of Visa and Cash App highlights the ongoing interest from American sponsors in F1.

Credit card company Visa has not had a major presence in F1 before, although was involved in an agreement with Caterham back in 2012 in a hospitality and marketing programme.

Visa has a history of sports sponsorship including the Olympics and Paralympics, the Women's World Cup and the NFL.

CashApp, which is a mobile payment service, is no stranger to F1 having originally joined Red Bull in 2021.

Speaking at the time of that deal, Red Bull boss Christian Horner said: "Since its inception Red Bull Racing has been a disruptor, challenging the status quo in Formula 1 and pushing technological boundaries to build the fastest possible F1 car.

"Cash App brings a similar ethos and drive to the world of personal finance, utilising technology to power quick, secure cash transfers, to buy and send Bitcoin, and to invest in stocks."