Marko on disappointment: 'We should have made savings sooner'.

Honda will leave Formula 1 at the end of next year and that is a hard laugh for Red Bull and Max Verstappen. The Austrian team has to rush to find a new engine supplier for which no option is ideal, advisor Helmut Marko also knows.

Reducing costs

It came as a shock last week even though at Red Bull they might have known a little longer about Honda's imminent departure. Marko talks to Auto, Motor und Sport about the departure of the Japanese. The departure that was certainly also related to money. Honda could no longer justify the high costs internally.

At Honda they spent more money than any other manufacturer because production in Asia is more expensive than in Europe. The corona pandemic gave Honda the final push. "We should have made savings sooner,' says Marko. Red Bull's lobbying to cut costs and the introduction of the budget ceiling came too late.

So what now?

For next year, Red Bull will get the engines from Honda. "Honda will build another engine for 2021. It will have to make up for some of the shortcomings compared to Mercedes, not only in terms of engine performance, but also in other areas". There will have to be another supplier for Red Bull from 2022 onwards. The FIA rules state that a team is always entitled to an engine, usually from the one with the fewest customer teams. That would be Renault in this case.

"It is true that we would at least get an engine. But we don't just take any engine. If you go to Renault, you get an engine that they build according to their needs. It is tailor-made for their chassis. That is another compromise for us". However, Renault has made progress, certainly in relation to Ferrari. Their engine isn't going for one metre but Marko thinks it won't last long: "Formula 1 can't afford to let Ferrari drive forever in the rear midfield".

Own engine

Taking over the Honda engine is also an option, and this has been discussed within Red Bull, although it takes a lot of work. A lot of staff will have to be brought in just for the hybrid part of the engine. It would be a considerable expense, and that is not all: "The problem would start in 2022. We would have to convert the engine to biofuel immediately. And we know how complex this technology is. These are the factors we have to take into account," concludes Marko.