"Got any money for the engine now that you've spent all on your driver?": When Christian Horner took a dig at Renault for poaching Daniel Ricciardo 

In 2018, Christian Horner was at loggerheads with Renault team boss Cyril Abiteboul after Red Bull terminated its engine partnership with Renault. The rivalry further escalated when Cyril poached Horner's driver Daniel Ricciardo, leading to an uncomfortable conversation captured by Netflix.

Netflix's documentary series on F1, 'Drive to Survive,' has generated enough drama over the years to draw a large audience to the sport. In 2019, the series highlighted an intense cold war between Horner and Cyril Abiteboul.

In 2018, Horner, team principal of Red Bull, made a bold decision to terminate his team's engine deal with Renault to partner with Japanese manufacturing company Honda.

However, Cyril Abiteboul, Renault team boss, hit back by poaching Daniel Ricciardo from the Milton Keynes squad.

This ignited a cold war between Horner and Cyril. In an episode of the documentary 'Drive to Survive' released in February 2019, the Renault boss took a dig at Christian Horner by saying:

"You need a driver and an engine."

However, Horner didn't hold back and hit back, saying:

"Yup. Have you got any money to spend on your engine now that you’ve spent it all on your driver?”

To this, Cyril replied:

“We have plenty of money."

Meanwhile, Red Bull ended up having the last laugh as, with Honda, they won two constructors championships and four drivers titles. Moreover, Cyril left Renault in 2021 after the team got rebranded as Alpine.

As for Daniel Ricciardo, his switch to Abiteboul's side didn't pan out as expected as he left the team in 2020 to join McLaren. After his McLaren jump also failed, Ricciardo eventually returned to Red Bull in 2023 as a reserve driver.

Meanwhile, after years of successful partnership with Honda, Horner and Co. are set to manufacture their own engine in Milton Keynes in partnership with Ford from the 2026 F1 season.

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Daniel Ricciardo dropped from Red Bull after unsatisfactory results

Daniel Ricciardo at F1 Grand Prix Of Singapore (Image Source: Getty)

Daniel Ricciardo reunited with Red Bull with the hope of having a fairytale ending to his career. He rejoined the team in 2023 as a reserve driver but was recalled by sister team Racing Bulls midway through the season.

He scored six points in the 2023 Mexico Grand Prix by finishing P7. However, the 2024 season turned out to be underwhelming. Ricciardo scored 12 points in 15 race weekends before eventually getting dropped after the Singapore Grand Prix.

Liam Lawson replaced him for the remainder of the season, and after an impressive performance, he got promoted to Red Bull as the second driver for the 2025 season.

Meanwhile, Daniel Ricciardo bid farewell to Red Bull Racing following the Singapore Grand Prix, and after failing to land a seat, he will sit out the 2025 F1 season for the time being.