Mateschitz Explains Sackings

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from itv-f1.com:

MATESCHITZ EXPLAINS SACKINGS

Last Updated: Monday, 10, January, 2005, 17:38

Red Bull owner Dietrich Mateschitz revealed to more than one Austrian journalist last weekend that a heated argument over driver selection was the main reason he let Tony Purnell and David Pitchforth go.

By early December 2004, all parties within Red Bull Racing were happy to sign the ultra-experienced David Coulthard

[Taku 0]

interesting article. sounds a bit like mateschitz's past disagreement with peter sauber. the red bull team really likes to show who's boss.

i just hope it doesn't destabilise the team too much. i don't know much about christian horner (except that he was a success in f3000), but pitchforth sounds like he had a lot of respect from the men in the factory (if even half of f1 racing magazine's hyperbole is to be believed).

of purnell on the other hand...some less-than complimentary rumours have surfaced recently...so why dump pitchforth too? doesn't make sense. he looks to be the unlucky victim here in a power struggle at the very top. collateral damage, so to speak...with horner getting his big break.

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Now, in 2005, both Davidson and Wurz will be testing yet again – and Purnell and Pitchforth are out of work. But highly placed sources tell us that Coulthard was very surprised to hear that Pitchforth, particularly, had been fired.

And, having driven for McLaren for the past nine years, DC knows better than most how vital a consistent management structure, with solid continuity, is to a team’s ongoing success…

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Gosh he did'nt even tell DC. What in the world's happening. And surely DC would prefer somebody like Alex Wurz with whom he has worked in the past few years

than Klien.

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Surely Wurz and the ant are better than Klien and Liuzzi. Why are the latter two even being considered?

[Kaciaj 0]

Surely Wurz and the ant are better than Klien and Liuzzi.  Why are the latter two even being considered?

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EASY TO ANSWER...WURZ HAS STRUGGLED SO MUCH AT BENETTON IN 2000 AND HAS BEEN A TEST DRIVER FOR 4 YEARS RIGHT NOW..TOO MUCH.THE RED BULL PROGRAM IS BORN TO HELP RED BULL YOUNGSTERS...DAVIDSON IS NOT A RED BULL YOUNGSTER AND IT WOULD HAVE BEEN A NONSENSE!!!KLIEN WAS TOO UNEXPERIENCED THIS YEAR BUT IS NOT A BAD DRIVER,CAUSE HE PERFORMED BETTER THAN PIZZONIA IN A JAGUAR (A TEAM THAT HAD MONEY JUST FOR ONE CAR),AND LIUZZI....HOW CAN YOU COMPARE HIM WITH OTHER DRIVERS IF HE NEVER HAD A SINGLE RACE IN A F.1 CAR?!?!I THINK WHAT HE DID IN F.3000 AND IN KARTING SAYS HE IS TALENTED..SO DON'T SAY THINGS THAT YOU SIMPLY CANNOT SAY !!!!!!!!

[Senna 0]

In testing Liuzzi hasn

[Sato 0]

In testing Liuzzi hasn’t been very impressive at all and DC has thrashed both him and Klien since his very first test, and it was by some margin.  Davidson’s performances in the third BAR warrant him being given a fulltime race seat and Wurz has shown moments of talent and has far greater experience in F1 than either Liuzzi or Klien and I would say he is much faster as well.

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Somethings wrong, because i actually agree with you.

[hollywood2003 0]

I think they should have kept Purnell and Pitchforth there at least for this season and brought Horner in this year to learn as much as he can, so many times before Jaguar showed that not much gets achieved by a new boy on the block in the first years, look at steiner and Lauda and even Bobby Rahal, they got the boot after short terms, the successful teams like Williams and Ferrari have had long term management structure especially the successful ferrari team of the past 5 yrs, stability as Schuey states it the cornerstone to success.

[Kaciaj 0]

In testing Liuzzi hasn

[Chris Strange 0]

Sure the guy knows about marketing, making a success out of his disgusting beverage is a proof of that. But as far as F1 is concerned he is pathetic, He parted company with Swiss Sauber a couple of years ago because the team chose Kimi Raikonen over his prot

[Senna 0]

When I think that drivers such as Heidfeld, Pizzonia, Davidson & Wurz etc can't find a racing drive I wonder where is F1 heading ?

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It wouldn

[climber49 0]

Mateschitz' Money, Mateschitz decision. If you disagree, you can buy your own F1 team and do something different. Red Bull invests an incredible amount of money to support all forms of motorsport, at every level, in every country of the world. Even here in the backwaters, Red Bull money supports some of our leading CLUB level drivers.

Talent, skill and committment are worth nothing to a driver unless they have the fourth most important attribute - 'patronage'! In the real world, a person's ability to attract a patron is arguably more important than the other three.

Unless you are a part of the Red Bull school, you will never drive for RBR! Isn't that blatantly obvious? Klien did passably well last year (he didn't crash in flames) and I think Liuzzi will win the drive this year. (His performances in 3000 had me out of the chair at times). Good Ol' DC - Looks like it's his year again this year! (Maybe Pitchforth and Purnell should have been more circumspect in signing him up)

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When I think that drivers such as Heidfeld, Pizzonia, Davidson & Wurz etc can't find a racing drive I wonder where is F1 heading ?

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well Heidfeld at Williams(may happen) and Wurz at RB( as likely as JV parternering Schumi at ferrari) will make the team mates battle more interesting definitely

[nojvnof1 0]

All this infighting takes me back to the days when the team was still Jaguar. I see nothing has really changed, just the colour of the car and some guy who makes energy drinks owns the team now. I'd prefer Liuzzi to get the drive to see if he's worth all the hype, right now, Im undecided on him as although he won F3000 it was the weakest field ever, and DC did really destroy him, and Klein, in testing. Klein did OK, nothing more, nothing less last year, and Id like to also see him get another chance so he can make use of his year's experience, so after all that dribble I really can't figure out who'll get the drive, but I do hear they will be both racing, which is pretty weird.

[Shadow 0]

if they are both not going to do much, well then seat share

[Senna 0]

The good thing about this situation is that DC is the clear NO: 1 and should perform well under this arrangement, which is something he hasn