Red Bull's future now in its own hands - Christian Horner

Red Bull

Red Bull's future now in its own hands - Horner

Red Bull could opt to develop its own PU

Ian Parkes

Tuesday 16 February 2021 08:00

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Christian Horner believes Red Bull has its destiny in its own hands after agreeing to use Honda's power unit from 2022.

Honda exits F1 at the end of the forthcoming season, but the recently announced power unit freeze for three years before the introduction of a new system from 2025 has provided Red Bull with the opportunity to plant a stake in the ground regarding its F1 commitment.

For the team to run the project for the three years, a new company entitled Red Bull Powertrains Limited has been formed that will be run from its Milton Keynes base.

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Team principal Horner believes that will leave Red Bull in a position to make a call on whether it will then develop its own system once the regulations from 2025 onwards are determined.

“It needs to be a long-term view because obviously investment into the facilities to gear up for this is quite significant,” said Horner.

“So you’ve got both the short-term scenario of the existing regulations and then, of course, whatever the new regulations are, we need to be in a position to obviously take that on as well.

“Strategically this is a big commitment by the group, it shows their commitment to F1 as well.

"To bring it on-site, on campus here in Milton Keynes is an enormous undertaking and one which truly integrates the power unit into the chassis.

"I think we have taken control of our own destiny in that respect, integrating power unit with chassis.

"We will have a facility capable of designing and operating the next generation of engines with a facility that will be invested within here."

While the independent route for Red Bull would appear to be an ideal one for the team, Horner has not ruled out a future engine partnership.

"I think we won't be beholden on having a partner, so we've got the independence to do it ourselves," said Horner.

"If an exciting partner comes along, then, of course, it would make sense to look at it very seriously, whether that be an OEM or another type of partner, a battery manufacturer or whatever.

"It really depends on what the engines are."