Red Bull F1 news: Toto Wolff BLOCKED key Mercedes power unit deal

Thumbnail for article regarding friendship Marko and Wolff — Photo: © IMAGO

F1 News & Gossip

Red Bull chief reveals Wolff BLOCKED key Mercedes deal

Red Bull could've been powered by their rivals, Mercedes

Jay Winter

Saturday 7 September 2024 13:57

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Red Bull's Helmut Marko has revealed that a 'handshake deal' with Mercedes was blocked by team principal Toto Wolff, thwarting what could have been a major power shift in Formula 1.

Marko suggested that Red Bull had reached a verbal agreement with the late Niki Lauda to use Mercedes power units from 2015, but the deal was ultimately stopped by Wolff.

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At the start of F1's hybrid era in 2014, Mercedes dominated the grid, leaving Red Bull struggling with an uncompetitive power unit supplied by Renault.

Frustrated by their performance gap, Red Bull explored alternatives, including a potential engine deal with Mercedes.

Helmut Marko says Red Bull struck a 'handshake deal' with Mercedes

Toto Wolff rejected a collaboration with Red Bull

Red Bull and Mercedes partnership

Red Bull senior advisor Marko revealed that Lauda, then a key figure within the Mercedes team, had agreed to a deal with Red Bull to supply their engines, a move that may have powered the Milton Keynes outfit right to the front of the grid once more.

"In 2014, when the new engine rules came in, our engine supplier, unfortunately, couldn't make a competitive engine," Marko explained on the Inside Line podcast.

"There was quite a big rivalry with Mercedes, and also our boss [Dietrich Mateschitz] was not a big fan.

"I said, 'Listen, with our engine, we can't motivate people anymore, because everybody knows with this engine you can't win.'

"We had a deal with Mercedes, a handshake deal with Lauda, which was not supported by Toto, so the deal didn't happen."

Red Bull ended up siding with Honda after leaving Renault

The decision forced Red Bull to remain with Renault until 2018, as neither Mercedes nor Ferrari were willing to supply engines to their rival, fearing Red Bull’s chassis could make them unbeatable with a stronger power unit.

In 2019, Red Bull turned to Honda, taking a gamble on the Japanese manufacturer, whose previous partnership with McLaren had failed to deliver results.

"We went to Honda," Marko continued.

"Honda, at that stage, failed to be competitive with McLaren, but I had some inside information on what they were planning to do, so we said, 'Yes, we go ahead. We take this risk.'"

The partnership with Honda paid off, with Red Bull returning to championship-winning form in 2021.

Marko added, "It was a brave decision. As Fernando Alonso said, it was like F2 power at the time, but we’ve always taken brave decisions. A little bit no risk, no fun."

While the Mercedes deal never materialised, Red Bull's eventual collaboration with Honda proved pivotal in their journey back to the top of the sport.