[peebee2]

No problem, as I understand it...

Red Bull were sponsoring drivers decades before they had an F1 team.

In more recent years some drivers got some funding but from Red Bull in Fuschl, not from the F1 teams.

In even more recent times, many drivers (though not all) got bagger all monetary backing but had the association with the F1 teams and could also introduce sponsors to the F1 teams to pay their way in their junior racing, and this also gave Red Bull a contractual hold on them, hence you will see ex-Red Bull drivers wearing Red Bull helmets years after they were "dropped."

Driving with Red Bull branding but paying all the bills yourself may seem silly but you still get the association, coaching and time on the (non-F1) sim and the expectation that you will get a shot if you do well, though the latter backfired for Lynn when he won GP3 but didn't get much, hence he took his Dad's money to Williams in F1 and DAMS in GP2.

They also now have Red Bull "athletes" who can use the branding. The idea is that the branding impresses other potential sponsors and Red Bull get free PR for a few cases of drinks, like Andrew Jordan in BTCC, or many other sports.

Red Bull really have done incredibly well with it as what they actually spend for the overall PR they get is low.