Well, after all, it is called Formula One racing, not Formula One parking, so it seems only logical that Red Bull would saunter into the dealer’s and seek something more reliable than the Renault power on which they thrived and starved on over the past 10 year.
Honda might not be the ideal answer, after all, they finished behind Renault in the constructors’ standings in the 2018 FIA Formula One World championship, but at least a few racing insiders believe that combining Honda reliability with the edge seemingly belonging to Red Bull from the chassis perspective, might at some point have Daniel Ricciardo regretting his decision to leave Red Bull for Renault.
Red Bull and Renault provided salacious fodder for gossip during the season past, as the two engaged in a verbal war over the racing fortunes suffered by Red Bull during 2018.
Chief Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko offered some fuel to the fire.
“For us, it was clear at one point that Renault could not deliver us a victorious engine,” Marko told Motorsport Magazine.“With their budget, you cannot expect them to fight against Ferrari and Mercedes. It was clear that we had to do something.”
Red Bull will use Honda power plants in 2019 in its Red Bull cars and also in its junior Toro Rosso squad.
As for Ricciardo, the principles at Red Bull claimed that budgetary concerns made it impossible for them to retain Ricciardo and his younger protégé, Max Verstappen.
If the new Red Bull cars are anywhere near as fast as are Marko’s lips, they could pose an actual challenge to Mercedes and Ferrari.
“We see an awful lot of encouraging progress being made,” Red Bull principle Christian Horner said. “Month by month, they are definitely closing the gap to Mercedes and Ferrari. What we are really encouraged by is the progress Honda are making.It’s positive for F1.”
The proof will be on display when the FIA Formula One World Championship resumes in 2019, when the Australian Grand Prix takes the opener.
