Horner hints at Red Bull-Aston Martin F1 engine deal

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has dropped a hint Red Bull could secure an agreement with Aston Martin to supply new Formula 1 engines in the future.

After the rapid-fire announcements of McLaren splitting with Honda to take up Renault engines for the next three years, with Toro Rosso securing a Honda deal for three seasons and Carlos Sainz heading to Renault for 2018 as a sweetener in the complicated contracts speculation has grown that Renault will pull out of its Red Bull supply deal at the end of next year.

While Horner has confirmed Red Bull will receive Renault engines for 2018 the Milton Keynes-based team has been linked to a number of future engine suppliers including Honda and Porsche from 2019 onwards if it loses its partnership with Renault.

Despite the rumours, Horner says no firm deal will be in place until next year but hinted at a deal with another manufacturer which already has ties to Red Bull.

“There should be another announcement fairly soon that won’t be with Porsche. It isn’t a Porsche one,” Horner told Sky Sports F1. “We have a relationship with a motor manufacturer already and you haven’t got to be a rocket scientists to work out what that is.”

Red Bull started a technical partnership with Aston Martin at the beginning of 2016 which has seen Adrian Newey take on a road car design role alongside his F1 duties. The partnership has already heralded the launch of the Aston Martin Valkyrie, previously titled the AM-RB 001, while Aston Martin badges adorn the Red Bull Racing livery.