Red Bull and Christian Horner floated The idea of a Engine freeze from 2022 season onwards, The Famous energy drink team is trying to find a way to take over the Honda engine project so it can run the power units after the Japanese manufacturer pulls out from Formula 1 at the end of 2021 season.
Red Bull wants to takes over Honda engine programme and facilities, potentially in partnership with someone else, and then run the power units itself until new rules come in to play by 2026 at the latest Instead of looking for other suppliers.
The Milton Keynes-based team is clear that it can only take over Honda engines if there is a block on development, as it cannot afford the huge costs that would come from having to keep upgrading the engines. The imposition of such a freeze would require support from rival teams, especially Ferrari, which retains a technical veto over rules as part of the new F1 Concorde Agreement.
Ferrari & Renault straight away said that they are against to the idea and they will not back it.
Ferrari CEO Louis Camilleri not in favor of Engine Freeze.
Speaking to Gazzetta dello Sport, Ferrari CEO Louis Camilleri, has emphatically ruled out any support for the plan. He believes that with the FIA pushing for a greater use of biofuels over the next few years, it will be impossible not to allow engine development to take place.
Camilleri Said, “We are firmly against freezing power units as it is against the spirit of F1. I think it is important to emphasise that the current rules already provide for freezing in 2023. Plus, F1 has ambitious goals in terms of sustainability.”
“Already from 2022, the regulations provide for the introduction of a fuel with a 10 percent ethanol content, but the FIA wants to reach 100 per cent as soon as possible: ideally the following year.
“This inevitably involves the development of some engine components. It is a very complicated subject, and we are actively talking about it with all the parties involved. I do not believe that it will happen, but it will accelerate the need to define the main characteristics of the power unit of the future.”
Camilleri also rejects the notion that other Engine Manufacturers will follow Honda in exiting Formula 1 if Sports doesn’t change direction with its power units.
Camilleri said, “We, and by this I mean the FIA, Liberty Media and the engine manufacturers, must properly balance their respective goals, sometimes conflicting, in terms of innovation, environmental sustainability and cost.
“The latter factor has all too often been ignored, creating a danger for everyone. We must also ensure that the supply and development of an engine is an economically attractive business.”
Renault & Cyril Abiteboul will not support the engine freeze plan
Speaking to media ahead of the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Renault team boss Cyril Abiteboul said his team’s ambitious development plans for the future meant it could not support the engine freeze plan now. And he says his mind has changed from several months ago, when Red Bull stood up against such a freeze because it did not want Honda held back.
Abiteboul said, “If you had asked me six months ago, we would have pushed hard for an even lower cap budget, to try to contain the costs of the chassis, but also to reduce those related to the engine by accepting a freeze. But Red Bull Racing and Honda were against it and we accepted it.
“So we continued on a different path. Since then, we have been very busy working on the 2022 engine platform and, if you ask me today what I think about freezing the engines, my position is clearly different from the one I had six months ago.
“I am against freezing the engines. We have no intention to stop what could be a very important platform for us. We do not accept it.”
Abiteboul said that the real focus for Renault is in framing the basis of future engine rules, which will come for 2026 at the latest.
“We have to talk to find a solution for the engines of the future in the medium to long term, also from the point of view of the sustainability of the new power units. We are in favour of talking about medium to long term plans for the engines of the future, but certainly not about freezing the power units.”
Red Bull boss Christian Horner is aware that not all his rivals will back the freeze plan, which is why he wants the FIA to step in.
“I think that ultimately this is where self-interest comes into play, and you know the job of the regulator and the commercial rights owner has to look at the broader picture of what is right for F1,” he said at Imola.
“We’ve obviously lost a manufacturer in Honda, which is disastrous news for the sport. And for Red Bull to take on that engine project, we just can’t comprehend [the costs], obviously thinking about open development, particularly in the world that it currently is at.
“I think the FIA and the commercial rights holder, they’re having constructive discussions. Obviously that needs to take place hand-in-hand with the OEMs that have an involvement in the sport. And I believe that that is what will happen, and obviously some form of solution needs to be found in the coming weeks.”
[…] said that although talks are ongoing with the FIA and nothing has been finalized about the engine freeze it wants, he was optimistic that things were moving in the right direction. “I would say […]