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Red Bull may mix youth, experience in '08

Dietrich Mateschitz has said the Red Bull Racing team will consider hiring a young driver to partner one of their veteran racers next season

Red Bull currently have the oldest driver pairing of the Formula One field, with 36-year-old David Coulthard and 30-year-old Mark Webber. The Scot is believed to have a contract with Red Bull until the end of this season.

Red Bull has several young drivers under contract, including Toro Rosso's pairing of Scott Speed and Tonio Liuzzi, whom Mateschitz reckons still have a lot to prove if they want to stay with Red Bull next year.

The Red Bull boss says, however, that he is not yet considering any new drivers seriously at this point.

"You always are (looking for drivers). But this really has no priority here," Mateschitz told Motorsport Aktuell. "You only go for another driver when you have a better one.

"What we think about is: in 2008  the cars will be very equal in our opinion, so it might make sense to have one veteran and one young driver in both teams.

"Both our young drivers, Speed and Liuzzi, have to prove a lot. They are now in their second year and will have to deliver."

Mateschitz also admitted Red Bull Racing will only try to hire a star driver when they have a car capable of winning races.

"We never daydreamed of having a top name such as Michael Schumacher in the  car in 2007. He would have had to cut back his salary by 90 percent," Austrian Mateschitz added.

"I believe that you only get a star driver when you have a car capable of winning.

"A star driver longs for such a car and first we have to prove that we have the means to build such a car. Then you can start to talk with top drivers. At the point where we were, Mark Webber was ideal for us."

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