The negotiations between Porsche and Red Bull F1 are at a standstill
If Audi has made its official announcement, it's still not the case for Porsche. Both engine manufacturers are expected to arrive in 2026, but no chassis team has yet announced its partnership with either of the two engine manufacturers. Worse, Red Bull is putting pressure on Porsche, as they seem to want too much from the Red Bull team.
At present, although only the announcement that Audi will indeed join F1 in 2026 is official, it is known that negotiations have begun with Red Bull for a potential merger of the team with Porsche – also within the Volkswagen Group.
Porsche should buy 50% of Red Bull’s shares in F1 and could therefore gain control of the team’s management to manage and organize it as Porsche would like. These conditions are not pleasing to Red Bull, especially Christian Horner and Helmut Marko, who are currently blocking the negotiations.
« Red Bull has always been an independent team. It is one of our strengths, one of our characteristics that allows us to react quickly. It is in our DNA.” explained Horner.
« We are not a team with a multinational structure and it is one of our strengths, and it is a prerequisite for the future. I believe that any partner or engine supplier working with us must fit into this framework,” he confirmed.
Red Bull has worked with several engine manufacturers, including Renault and Honda. If Red Bull’s ambition by 2026 is to manufacture its own engines with the help of Honda, who still has a strong presence in Red Bull’s offices, then they are approaching their partnership with Porsche with caution.
We have some great talents who have joined us at Red Bull Power Unit [the department dedicated to engine development] and we have potential. Time will tell if we continue on our own or if we bring in a partner with us.
If Porsche does not enter Formula 1 with Red Bull, other teams could partner with the German engine manufacturer. Alfa Romeo Sauber has indeed announced the end of its marketing partnership with Alfa Romeo and therefore will revert to the name Sauber by 2024. It would therefore be entirely feasible for the Swiss team to be powered by a different engine manufacturer than Ferrari, such as Porsche (which has not yet officially announced its arrival) or Audi.
