Brendon Hartley has been axed from the Red Bull Junior Team after five years with the programme. The New Zealanders Formula Renault 3.5 drive with Tech 1 Racing has been taken by Jean-Eric Vergne who is currently dominating the British Formula 3 Championship. Australian Daniel Ricciardo will become the sole Red Bull Formula 1 test and reserve driver for the remainder of the season. While his race performances have generally been good, Hartley has struggled with qualifying all year which has been his downfall. Off track Hartley had been kept busy in the simulator helping Red Bull develop the RB7 for 2011.
