Express. Home of the Daily and Sunday Express. HOME News Politics Royal Showbiz & TV Sport Comment Finance Travel Life & Style Football Tennis F1 Boxing UFC Cricket Rugby Golf Racing NFL NBA Other Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has spoken out about one of his former partners and rivals.
Christian Horner has spoken about Red Bull’s new project (Image: Getty)
Red Bull boss Christian Horner has hinted that he has sympathy for long-term rival and former Renault team principal Cyril Abiteboul.
The pair had some frosty exchanges in the past after their partnership ended on a sour note. Renault used to be Red Bull’s engine supplier until the latter decided to split and work with Honda.
The relationship became turbulent in 2014 after the advent of the V6 turbo-hybrid era, which led to compatibility issues and mounting frustrations. The partnership eventually ended in 2018.
And Horner has now revealed that – since Red Bull turned their hand to building engines – he now understands the struggles that Abiteboul was forced to endure.
Red Bull are currently venturing into the world of power unit manufacturing for the upcoming 2026 regulations. They have used suppliers for the past two decades but now hope to operate independently and build their own engines.
In 2026, Red Bull will also be able to supply engines as well, and Horner has hinted that he is now understanding of the struggles that Abiteboul had to contend with as being a supplier can be a loss-making business.
He told Motorsport Netherlands: “With the prices that the FIA uses, supplying a customer engine would even be loss-making. I almost feel sympathy for Cyril.”
Cyril Abiteboul worked as team principal for Renault previously (Image: Getty)
Red Bull believe that they have the infrastructure at the Jochen Rindt building to be able to supply four Formula One teams with engines, two of which will be Red Bull Racing themselves and the RB team.
Speaking about the approaches that his team have already received, Horner explained: “We have been approached by different teams, some are probing to see who will have the most competitive engine.
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Christian Horner is reluctant to onboard any new teams ahead of 2026 (Image: Getty)
“But our focus is fully on the two Red Bull teams at the moment, because we want to walk before we run. If something might come up later, then we are open to the right partner.”
It remains to be seen whether Red Bull are willing to supply engines for two teams in the future or whether Horner stands by his current approach and decides to focus his side’s energy on honing their newfound craft before onboarding clients.
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