Red Bull: Renault broke promises, Honda don't

Christian Horner says 2019 has been refreshing for Red Bull to have worked with an engine partner that has kept his promises, in a dig at former suppliers Renault.

Red Bull ditched the French manufacturer for 2019 and swapped to Honda, although Renault poached Daniel Ricciardo from the Milton Keynes-based outfit to further deepen tensions.

While Ricciardo failed to make the podium in a single race in 2019, Red Bull enjoyed strong results with Honda – Max Verstappen taking three race wins, two pole positions and finishing third in the drivers' championship.

Honda brought three engine upgrades across the 2019 season, with its fourth and final specification helping Red Bull gain strong end-of-season results in Brazil and Abu Dhabi especially – something Horner suggested Renault would not have been capable of.

He said: "We've had a really good car at a lot of circuits this year and the progression with Honda, along with developments from our fuel partner Exxon Mobil, has been a real collaboration and yielded positive results.

"Honda's first victory at our home race in Austria brought a phenomenal amount of emotion for everyone involved. Honda worked so hard to achieve this, they had a tough time coming back into Formula 1 in the hybrid era and the dedication we have seen from them was rewarded with that first victory.

"This is the first year for a long time where what was promised has been delivered.

"It's a different type of partnership, it's a true partnership and you can see what it means to Honda when they get a result: the emotion, the pride, the satisfaction throughout the whole business."

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