Red Bull and Ford discussed deal for six months: 'Went quickly'

Ford wanted to return to Formula 1 for some time, the only question was who they would team up with. Several options passed, but in Red Bull Powertrains they finally found the ideal partner. Speaking to GPblog.com and others, Mark Rushbrook, Ford's Global Director, reveals how the decision to return to the premier class of motorsport came about and how they ended up with Red Bull.

Ford excited

Ford didn't make the decsion overnight. All options have been studied. "In many ways, it was a long journey. It started 2+ years ago as we started to see and understand what the future of the sport was with a commitment to technology changes, the commitment to sustainable fuels, net carbon zero and the change to the technical regulations to make electrification an even bigger component of the hybrid power unit," Rushbrook listed the changes that gave Ford the desire to return.

It made the US manufacturer increasingly interested. "That became of interest to us where we knew we could contribute something technically. And also continue to learn in those areas. In parallel to that, we saw what was happening to the sport itself. With the growing global fanbase and diversity of the fanbase would then give us the platform to tell our story as a company."

Ford saw that Formula 1 just kept growing and that was the moment when a possible comeback became serious. "That became of interest to us where we knew we could contribute something technically. And also continue to learn in those areas. In parallel to that, we saw what was happening to the sport itself. With the growing global fanbase and diversity of the fanbase would then give us the platform to tell our story as a company," Rushbrook said, going on to say that the framework conditions had to be right.

Interest from many (future) F1 teams

A period of conversations followed, and as a return started to get more serious and serious, the phone at Ford was ringing more and more frequently. "A lot of people came forward. Whether it was an existing team or perspective teams to see if there was a chance to partner with them," he said.

However, Ford did not want to go into partnership with just any party. " It would not have felt right or appropriate to partner with another automative manufacture together on the power unit. They were certainly some opportunities to do that. But that wasn't the right way for us," said Rushbrook, who saw a big advantage in Red Bull. "It definitely is right to partner with someone like Red Bull Powertrains. Because they are not a rival automative manufacture."

Ford asked themselves

Rushbrook and his men also approached some teams themselves. "We approached some teams but none of them seemed right. Coming back in as a full factory team as we did in the past, also difn't feel right. We wanted to come in strategically to contribute where it made sense, and learn where it made sense."

Ford knew what they did and did not want and eventually ended up with Red Bull. "I'd say with Red Bull, the discussion was quickly apparent that what they were looking for in a partner was something we could bring and what we were looking in a partner was something we could bring." After the summer of 2022, talks with the Austrians began in earnest. "It went quickly in a sense that we knew it was the right partnership from the beginning. To us it's very important to come into the sport at the right time."

Asked what name the engine will carry from 2026, Rushbrook finally said,"Red Bull Ford."