The Formula 1 team formerly known as AlphaTauri has a new name for the 2024 season.
Now they have some new faces in critical spots in their organization.
As previously discussed, the team will compete under the new name Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, a move that was unveiled last week. While that move might be notable for what it reminds us regarding sports, and F1, the moves announced by the team on Monday are notable for what they could mean for the team on the track itself.
The team introduced three critical additions to the organization, moves that could benefit the team this season, and beyond. The first is the appointment of Tim Goss to the new role of Chief Technical Officer. Goss most recently served as the Technical Director for the FIA, F1’s governing body. Goss has extensive F1 experience that he forged during years with McLaren, where he rose from assistant race engineer to become Head of Vehicle Performance, Chief Engineer, Director of Engineering and Technical Director in 2013.
“I am delighted to join Visa Cash App RB at the start of its new era of competition,” said Goss in a statement released to the media, including SB Nation. “It’s a team with great pride and heritage, with some exceptional people already in place, and I’m looking forward to working with Team Principal Laurent Mekies and alongside Technical Director Jody Egginton. There’s an exciting challenge ahead of us but I think the team is well-equipped to meet that head on.”
He will join the team in October.
In addition, Guillaume Cattelani joins the team as Deputy Technical Director, reporting to Egginton. Cattelani has over 15 years of F1 experience and comes over from Red Bull, where he most recently served as a Chief Engineer.
“It’s fantastic to have this opportunity to take the Visa Cash App RB team to the next level of competitiveness,” said Cattelani. “I’m really looking forward to working with Jody and all of the other members of the technical team to create machinery that drives the team forward and takes us towards the front of the grid.”
Finally, Visa Cash App added Alan Permane as the team’s new Racing Director, and he will report to incoming Team Principal Laurent Mekies. Permane has over three decades of F1 experience, and was most recently the Sporting Director at Alpine, a position he held for over a decade.
“After a few months of downtime, it’s great to return to racing again with the Visa Cash App RB team” said Permane in the team’s announcement. “From long experience, I know how professional, driven and competitive the people within this race team are and I can’t wait to see where that spirit can take the team in the future.”
For the incoming Team Principal, the moves are a sign that the team will make some technical steps forward in 2024, and beyond.
“The appointments of Tim, Guillaume and Alan add a vast amount of winning expertise to the Team, and I have no doubt that they will help take the team to the next level in F1,” said Mekies. “We already have a very strong and hugely experienced group at the Team and bringing onboard highly-skilled individuals like Tim, Guillaume and Alan will boost our capability and help us meet the highest technical standards at Visa Cash App RB F1 Team, both at the factory and at the track.”
There are reasons to believe that Visa Cash App will take a step forward in 2024. They are starting with a pair of experienced drivers in Yuki Tsunoda and Daniel Ricciardo, and the relationship between the team and Red Bull may grown as well, given reports that the team will be using a number of components from the RB19, last year’s dominant package.
Now with these additions — including adding Cattelani directly from Red Bull — there is reason to believe that the team can take that big step forward.
