Red Bull and AlphaTauri are on the search for a new power unit supplier after the shock announcement that Honda will withdraw from Formula 1 at the end of 2021.
The Japanese engine manufacturer returned to the championship in 2015 with McLaren, having been inspired by the new breed of power units that focused on hybrid and energy recovery technology.
They suffered a difficult and unsuccessful partnership, culminating in them splitting up and Honda joining forces with Toro Rosso for 2018, before taking on Red Bull as a works team the following year.
Across the two teams, they have clinched five race victories to date in their two-and-a-half-year partnership with the Red Bull family.
Honda said the decision had been made because the automobile industry was going through a "once-in-one-hundred-years period of great transformation" and that they'll leave have been "able to attain its goal of earning victories".
"Honda will work together with Red Bull Racing and Scuderia AlphaTauri to continue competing with its utmost effort and strive for more victories all the way to the end of the 2021 season," the Japanese company added in a statement.
The decision will leave Formula 1 with three power unit suppliers – Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault. Under the current rules, Renault would be obliged to supply Red Bull and AlphaTauri with engines as they currently have the fewest customers, unless the teams can convince Mercedes or Ferrari to provide a supply.
Red Bull – on behalf of both their works team and AlphaTauri – have recently committed to the new Concorde Agreement, which binds them to the championship until the end of 2025.
"We look forward to embarking on a new era of innovation, development and success," said Red Bull boss Christian Horner, who said he understood and respected Honda's decision.
"As a group, we will now take the time afforded to us to further evaluate and find the most competitive power unit solution for 2022 and beyond.”
formula1.com
Last edited by Michelc30; 2nd October 2020 at 08:44.
Now RB will go back to Renault engine. How will it be for max Verstappen
MV's contract is now free, I see him driving for Mercedes next. Or Merc supplies engine to RBR and Ham/Max will be teammates at RBR
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
Yup. I’m seeing max exiting RB 2021. Even though he signed contract till 2023.
But what are the options for him?
1. RB- Renault : Patch up
2. Mercs : if Lewis leaves, then Merc will get max.
3. Renault : if Renault is a force, then after Alonso exit. They will get max in.
4. Ferrari : no need
5. McLaren : DR/Lando looks like long term deal.
6. Aston Martin: vettel/stroll, if vettel is out then there’s potential for Max in.
So there are options for him. No worries.
Hamilton will certainly retire at the end of 2021 after breaking the records. He would want to retire on a high emulating his idol Rosberg. Max will quickly fill in. Seb will have a clause too that if he gets an offer from either Mercedes or Red Bull, he can leave. He may get that offer from Red Bull after Verstappen leaves. There will be turmoil everywhere for sure. Ferrari is the only team to have everything sorted for the near future.
Marko promised him youngest pole sitter then youngest world champion then world champion. It does not look like it will happen next year too. And then with engine change, Verstappen very well knows that Red Bull would be nowhere in the first year of engine change in 2022. Looks like the stars have aligned for his entry into Mercedes in 2022.
Back then it was more of a bargaining chip tbh, just some bluffing to the media to get the FIA sign a more suitable agreement. This time the concern would be genuine; not only are they losing Honda, they're also risking Verstappen leaving for whom no replacement is available on the grid, Hamilton won't be leaving Mercedes no matter what and Charles is signed till 2024 with a contract that is unfavourable in terms of exit clauses. No one else are nearly adaptable enough to drive a car that is rough to handle (Ricciardo struggled massively in 2015 and you can see the same with Seb now).
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
Renault are obligated to supply RedBull with PU's after the Honda exit.
It's in the rules.
It's not how start but how you finish.
What a company. Just out of blue announces the departure, typical Honda.
On one hand, this is bad news for F1 and I don't see this news as a cause for celebration. Now only 3 engine manufacturers left, and there is no guarantee of Renault/Mercedes staying for the next 5 years. Domenicalli has a tough few years ahead of him.
On the other hand, I have zero sympathy for Horner-Marko. They've made their bed, they've burned bridges and I don't think Renault are too keen to work with them again. I don't think Mercedes will supply them engines, and I sure as hell hope that Ferrari will stay away from that team.
The most important aspect is now Max's future, he's not gonna stick with Red Bull for long (which would probably be the end of Red Bull F1). So let's see where he goes next.
I don't see how merc can provide engines to them with mclaren and aston martin on board and williams.
RENAULT under regulations is the candidate and then there is Ferrari.
All that unless we see another constructor coming in.
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"If someone said to me that you can have three wishes, my first would have been to get into racing, my second to be in Formula 1, my third to drive for Ferrari" - Gilles Villeneuve
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
It's not just that, Scuderia Ferrari is the most valuable racing team in the entire planet. No other racing team comes close to match our market value. The name "Ferrari" brings more money to F1 than anything else, but it's just unfortunate that our current management often seems reluctant to use the huge leverage they have over F1.
It is definitely sad for F1 - Honda leaving the sport shows that they know they cant beat Merc now, nor in the next rule cycle. In my opinion, they foresee more dominance and want to save themselves the embarrassment and the money. They probably anticipated being much closer this year, once they saw how much pace merc still had they pulled the plug.
~FORZA FERRARI~
A year ago in this very month, Horner-Marko-Max were running their mouth about our engine.
And a year later in this very same month, they have found out that Honda is leaving. Hilarious.
Yup, I don't care one bit about Red Bull. But Honda's departure is a big red signal for this sport. What happens if Renault decides to leave next year? Can Ferrari and Mercedes supply the entire grid? I don't think so.
The FIA needs to get their act together. Freezing aero and engine parts is not the answer, reducing the overall cost of manufacturing current power units is the way to go.
Current engine formula is heavily dependent on ICE. They must put more emphasis on electrical components.
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
What a shame, they screwed McLaren and Alonso in F1 and Alonso in Indy two times to leave now. Good riddance.
AFAIR, it was RBR (via Helmut Marko and Max Crashtappen) who were talking ***** about Ferrari, not Honda, I could be wrong.
However, the fact they're quitting because they 've got a bad time competing against Mercedes, speaks volume about Ferrari, even,no, specially at our current state. We should take a moment to ponder about this.
"If someone said to me that you can have three wishes, my first would have been to get into racing, my second to be in Formula 1, my third to drive for Ferrari" - Gilles Villeneuve
Mclaren F1: Honda came in 2015 with no help and no guidance not to mention Mclarens size zero chassis.....both Mclaren and Honda were "bumping heads."
Then Honda switched to Toro Rosso and it was a marriage made in heaven....to get ready for RedBull next year.
2 different companes with 2 different mind sets.
Indy: Sato won with a Honda engine when Alonso first entered Indy.......it was a roll of the dice.
It's not how start but how you finish.
Think of this... they came with high aspirations into this year only to find a merc to do whatever they want, their das protest trashed , gap opening, aston martin coming with a shady way due to toto Wolff ways. Why would they stay ?
Sent from my SM-N975F using Tapatalk
"If someone said to me that you can have three wishes, my first would have been to get into racing, my second to be in Formula 1, my third to drive for Ferrari" - Gilles Villeneuve
"I've always believed that you should never, ever give up and you should always keep fighting even when there's only a slightest chance." - Michael Schumacher
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