Ricciardo requested number 1 status

The reigning world champion team Red Bull, albeit amid less headline-grabbing controversy, is undergoing a major change of direction.

Daniel Ricciardo has requested number 1 status for the rest of his 2014 title campaign against the dominant but warring Mercedes pairing, which at the moment boss Christian Horner is unwilling to cede.

It seems that Spanish television sometimes has more faith in me than my own team does.

Sebastian Vettel

But it is tough times for the team's reigning quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel, who is said to now be seriously considering a big-money offer to spearhead the new McLaren-Honda campaign.

In an interview with the German at Monza, F1's official website asked Vettel about the "impression" he gave at Spa-Francorchamps "that the team is no longer fully behind you".

Vettel denied that, but the very same impression returned with force at Monza.

In a friendly interview with Spanish television immediately after the Italian Grand Prix, Vettel reportedly said: "It seems that Spanish television sometimes has more faith in me than my own team does."

Red Bull official Dr Helmut Marko played down Vettel's remarks.

"That was just the first emotion that came out of him. He was naturally disappointed that his teammate beat him, although in qualifying he was better than Ricciardo.

"I think it was a very normal reaction," the Austrian insisted to German television Sky.