Renault calls out Red Bull's lack of loyalty and commitment

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The bad blood between Red Bull Racing and Renault just got thicker, with a divorce between the two partners now a likely prospect following Cyril Abiteboul's latest shot at the former world championship winning team.

Red Bull is currently weighing its engine options for the next few years and a switch to Honda power after twelve seasons of collaboration with Renault.

By team boss Christian Horner's own admittance, the last few years have been like "a roller-coaster ride" between the Milton Keynes-based outfit and the French manufacturer.

Red Bull drivers pressured to perform in qualifying - Horner

A rather bitter Cyril Abiteboul seems resigned to losing Red Bull.

"Red Bull criticising its engine supplier is nothing new," the Renault Sport F1 boss El Confidencial.

"We have been with them for 12 years, won eight championships together, and yet Renault is still criticised. We are used to it.

"They will never learn and they will never be able to appreciate the need for loyalty and commitment to a supplier," he added.

Interestingly, Abiteboul revealed that when Renault returned to F1 in 2015, it offered to form a works relationship with Red Bull "and they declined the offer".

"If we bought a team it was because the possibility of integration was not attractive to them."

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Abiteboul dismissed Red Bull's recent claim that Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen were both held back by their Renault engine.

"They have the capacity to win races this season, they did it in Shanghai already and they also would have in Baku if their two drivers had not crashed," he said.

If Red Bull and Renault do split, the manufacturer will still have McLaren as a customer.

"If Red Bull is the aerodynamic reference, then McLaren is for the mechanical part of the car," said Abiteboul.

"It's a great opportunity for us so we'll see where it takes us, for now until 2020. We'll see what happens then."

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.