Christian Horner is delighted with the collaboration between Red Bull Powertrains and Ford. The American car brand will support the engine division of Red Bull Racing from 2026, while the Austrian racing stable will retain autonomy. This was an important condition for the cooperation between the two parties. Work at the Milton Keynes factory has been underway for some time now.
From 2026, a Ford sticker will be placed on the engines of Red Bull Powertrains. The Austrian racing team has built the motorcycle department from the ground up in 55 weeks. It had been clear for some time that there would be a collaboration with a respected car brand. ‘The collaboration is strategically important to us. In Ford we have found the right partner with the right attitude for our project,” says Horner at Auto, Motor und Sport, which was allowed to take a look behind the scenes.
Porsche previously did not fit into the Red Bull picture. The German car brand wanted too much say in the team and the racing team was not behind that. Ford was not required to participate in the racing team. “We set up our motorcycle division as a start-up. We bought the equipment, brought together engineers from different companies and taught them the Red Bull philosophy. We have all specialists and all special tools together. Ford acknowledged that.’
Red Bull hopes to break even in 2028
There is a lot to do about the status of Red Bull Powertrains. Ferrari in particular did not agree with the fact that the engine division would be recognized as a newcomer, as Red Bull gathers a lot of knowledge from Honda. For Red Bull there were also some important rules that ensured that the project got off the ground. “Without a budget cap for the power unit, this project would not have been possible. We hope that we will break even in 2027 or 2028, so that we are not in the red for the car and the engine together,” concludes Horner.
