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Friday 02 October 2020
Honda will leave Formula 1 at the end of 2021. Red Bull and Alpha Tauri will have to look for a new engine manufacturer by 2022. The group justifies its withdrawal with the “great transformation” currently facing the automotive industry.
The withdrawal of engine supplier Honda shocked Formula 1. Seven years after McLaren’s return to the top category of motorsport, the Japanese company was fired in late 2021 and halted its multi-million dollar program. Max Verstappen’s Red Bull racing team and sister team Alpha Tauri will have to look for a new partner engine from 2022. Just a week after his appointment as future Formula 1 managing director, former Ferrari team boss Stefano Domenicali has to face the consequences of this frustrating news.
After all, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said both racing teams want to remain in the top class of motorsport for the long haul. “As a signatory to the latest Formula 1 Concorde agreement, Red Bull Racing remains committed to the sport for the long term and we look forward to entering a new era of innovation, development and success,” said former team boss Sebastian Vettel after the Honda hammer. . . The aforementioned basic contract runs until the end of 2025.
The corona pandemic with production shutdowns and interrupted supply chains has also hit the auto industry hard. As of March 31, 2021, Honda expects a net profit of 165,000 million yen (1,300 million euros), 63.8% less compared to the previous year. The auto industry is in “a period of great upheaval that occurs once every hundred years,” the automaker wrote. Therefore, resources should be devoted to research and development of future engines. Top priority: Honda wants to be climate neutral by 2050.
What options do the two racing teams have?
“Although we are disappointed not to continue our partnership with Honda, we are extremely proud of our mutual success,” said Horner. The Briton recorded five wins and 15 podiums for Red Bull and Alpha Tauri. Honda joined Alpha Tauri’s predecessor Toro Rosso in 2018, and a season later Red Bull also relied on Japanese engines.
What options do Austrian energy drink billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz’s two racing teams now have? After the announced departure of Honda, Mercedes, Ferrari and Renault remain as engine manufacturers. Does a new automaker want to challenge the sinful adventure of Formula 1 despite the effects of the crown? Or is Red Bull returning to Renault? They know each other well, but they are no longer valued.
Is Formula E a goal?
Red Bull and Vettel cleared all world titles with the French between 2010 and 2013. With the transition to the hybrid era, Red Bull only became frustrated with the partnership and the development of the engine. Horner now wants to take the “time it takes” to find a new manufacturer. Until then, they want to keep competing for victories. Honda wants to stay connected to motorsport. The all-electric Formula E could be a target.
The Japanese have memories of the glorious 80s and 90s, when, together with McLaren, they won 44 Grands Prix and eight World Championships. After the 2008 season, the Japanese had already retired before returning to the traditional English team McLaren in 2015. Of these three shared and bitterly disappointing years, the images with then-driver Fernando Alonso are the most likely to remain in the memory. Filled with frustration with the slow engine, the two-time world champion even grabbed a camping chair after a failure and enjoyed at least a few rays of sunshine on the edge of the track.
