Abiteboul rejects Red Bull's request: 'It was them who were against it then'

Since Red Bull Racing have known that it will have to continue without Honda's factory support from 2022, they have been diligently looking for a solution. One option is for Red Bull to take over the running of the engines from Honda, but for that, the development of the engines must be frozen.

That is a demand that Marko has emphasised several times when it comes to taking over the Honda engines. Red Bull presented that idea to the other manufacturers this week, but both Ferrari and Renault reject it. Ferrari let this be known earlier, but now Renault are also taking a clear stance.

Cyril Abiteboul explains to Motorsport.com that the timing of Red Bull's request comes at an unfortunate time. If they had come six months earlier, he says Renault would certainly have agreed, but now the manufacturer has already worked hard on plans for the 2022 engine.

In fact, six months ago Renault came up with a similar request: "But Red Bull Racing and Honda of all people were against it, we accepted that at the time. We have no intention of stopping now, also because further development may prove to be an important aspect for us. So we do not accept that request," is Abiteboul's clear position.