Categories: F1 News, Reports and Race ResultsRed Bull Racing

Horner in favour of new engine technology

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Christian Horner says he is in favour of a different type of power unit being permitted in Formula One.

It emerged on Friday evening that the FIA and Bernie Ecclestone are pushing ahead with plans to introduce a second set of power unit regulations which would allow an independent manufacturer to supply teams. While Ecclestone has championed the return of a V8, Horner wants to see F1 allow a cheaper, louder alternative to the current V6 turbos.

Asked about a potential return to V8s, Horner replied: “We might have to because we don’t have an engine!

“If you look at the plus points of the V8s were, the sound was the obvious one for the fans. It was quite simple technology compared to what we have now, so the costs were significantly lower, but the machinery that we have now through the regulations we have, they are incredible bits of equipment and I think what we need to do is rather than look backwards, look forwards as to what should the engine develop to be for the future.

“I think there are elements of what we have that are strong at the moment but I think it can be improved and I would certainly love to see the volume go back up and certainly the cost of development come down.”

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.