Red Bull and Honda will revive their brand association in 2023, with the latter putting its name on the power unit of next year’s contender fielded by the Milton Keynes squad.
Wednesday’s 2023 F1 entry list communicated by the FIA identified Red Bull Racing and Scuderia AlphaTauri’s engine partner as ‘Honda RBPT’ – Honda Red Bull Power Trains.
At the end of last year, Honda officially exited F1 as a works engine supplier for Red Bull’s teams.
However, unofficially, the company continued to work in the background in partnership with Red Bull Powertrains which took over Honda's F1 engine programme through an IP licensing deal with the Japanese manufacturer.
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Last summer, Honda extended its power unit support collaboration with Red Bull Powertrains until the end of the 2025 Formula 1 season, while the Honda logo made a comeback last October at Suzuka on the bodywork of RBR and AlphaTauri’s machines.
It’s unclear if the collaboration between the companies will continue beyond 2025, as RBPT has vowed to develop its own engine for 2026 while Honda has also registered with the FIA as an independent engine manufacturer.
But they may well pursue a joint effort, with RBPT developing an Internal Combustion Engine and Honda overseeing the unit’s hybrid components.
However, Honda could also follow its own way as it has suggested, perhaps within the context of a works team renaissance.
As for Red Bull, after its failed endeavor with Porsche, rumors have emerged that Ford - spurred on by F1’s growing popularity in America - could join forces with the reigning world champions, either as a sponsor that would pick up the badging rights for RBPT’s engine or as genuine technical partner.
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