Horner: 'It had been our Achilles heel until Honda came along'

Red Bull Racing has big ambitions for the coming years. Whereas in the past the team was dependent on engine suppliers, with Red Bull Powertrains they are taking matters into their own hands. Team boss Christian Horner expects a lot from the possibilities in the future.

With the new engine rules insight, there is plenty of work for Red Bull to do in the coming years. The team of Max Verstappen and Sergio Pérez needs to develop an engine that is good enough to take on Mercedes. However, Horner has enough faith in his team to know that Red Bull is capable of doing just that.

Evolution Red Bull Racing

"It will be an evolution of the existing regulations," he said in an interview with AutoCar. "We aren’t dictated to by the OEMs that it has to be this or that; we want what’s right for the sport. We would like it to sound good and it needs to tick boxes environmentally and efficiency-wise, so I assume it will be a derivative of what we currently have."

"For us, it really does fill a gap that has always been missing and had been our Achilles heel until Honda came along: that we haven’t had control of our own destiny," Horner continued. "We’re tremendously useful to [F1 commercial rights holder] Liberty Media and F1, because we could gear up to supply other teams if required, as manufacturers tend to come and go. To have an independent engine builder like Red Bull Powertrains is attractive to Liberty."