‘Nothing is Fixed’: Red Bull Not Ruling Out Possible F1 Collaboration With Porsche

For the past six years, various reports have been emerging regarding the Volkswagen group’s entry into F1. While the previous ones have been through one of its own subsidiaries, Porsche, the recent rumors are hinting at a possible partnership with Red Bull.

And speaking on Red Bull’s house broadcaster ‘ServusTV’, consultant Helmut Marko did not deny the rumors but nor did he confirm them, “We keep talking. But nothing is fixed.”

Regarding possible collaborations, Red Bull has been speaking to a lot of companies. Once, they even had brief discussions with Mercedes, as Toto Wolff had revealed.

As for the Volkswagen group, they have been looking to enter the scene for quite a while. From 2025, aided by the more flexible FIA regulations, they could be looking to start either of their subsidiaries, Audi, Lamborghini, or Porsche, on the grid.

A report by BBC also brought the likes of Williams and McLaren into play as possible partners for the Volkswagen Group. But a collaboration with Red Bull looks more likely because of the common nationality connection.

Dietrich Mateschitz, Helmut Marko and Fritz Enzinger (VP, Volkswagen), all three are Styrian. And they could hash out the finer details without any outside involvement if they genuinely want to shape their future together.

Engine self-sufficiency of Red Bull attracts possible investors

Another knock on Williams and McLaren is that they are customer teams. On the other hand, Red Bull could supply them with their own in-house engines from 2025. Hence, it makes the partnership more fruitful for Volkswagen.

“The equipment is such that we will not only be able to carry out the maintenance of our engines ourselves from 2022, but we will also have the technical options to be able to develop a new engine ourselves,” said Marko.

(Quotes have been translated via Google)

The new regulations from 2025 will make the power units much simpler and cheaper. They will incorporate environmentally friendly elements like e-fuels and e-turbo. Presumably, these are also integral for Volkswagen. Now it is up to to the FIA to make the rules attractive enough for gigantic manufacturers like these to enter the F1 scene.

Read More – F1 2021: How the Rules & Regulations are Changing Compared to 2020