“Formula 1 does not appear in it”- Audi responds to the links made with Red Bull ahead of 2025 new engine regulations with Honda exit.
After the announced exit of Honda in 2022, it was recently reported that Audi would be partnering with Red Bull to facilitate power unit from 2025 onwards.
However, in a report published by RTL, an Audi spokesperson has remarked that they don’t intend to enter Formula 1 in the foreseeable future, debunking the erstwhile stories of Audi introducing itself as an alternate power unit option.
Audi’s source has explained that denial for it is “in my drawer for 10 years” and that “at the moment we are not dealing with Formula 1.” Moreover, it has also been claimed that Audi’s motorsport plan has been released for the next 10 years, and “Formula 1 does not appear in it.”
It cost more, but not significantly more.
Building an F1 power unit has always been considered a costly affair, but Red Bull boss Helmut Marko feels that it is not a massive charge but a one-time pay.
“One of our existing buildings is being adapted into an engine shop,” he said. “This engine shop is technically designed in such a way that the development – provided it stays within the scope that is envisaged – for the new engine regulations could be carried out there.
“It is a one-time investment in the building and, above all, in the test benches. But the running costs will not be so much higher than if we had bought an engine somewhere [else]. It costs more, but not significantly more.”
By 2025, Red Bull will be using its current engine built by Honda, after that, it would be using a new power unit under new regulations, which would require a new partner, or it would have to partner with either Ferrari, Mercedes or Renault.
