Red Bull's rumored 2026 F1 engine partner Ford will not 'substantively' respond to speculations

Suggestions of Red Bull's rumored talks with the American automotive giant were snubbed by Ford's Performance Global Director, Mark Rushbrook.

In a recent media call for NASCAR, in which the manufacturer also competes, the question of a future F1 involvement was snubbed instantly as Mark said there was nothing substantiative to inform. He said:

"It should be clear that we are here to talk about NASCAR. We are focused on that class. It is certainly true that there is plenty of speculation about this, but that is nothing to which we will respond to substantively."

However, as reported by Motorsport.com's Italian edition, Red Bull are in discussions with Ford for a possible partnership. The partnership would more or less not involve any technical alliance as the RBPT division will take care of the power unit itself. The report shared by Motorsport claimed:

"The American company has understood how important F1 is becoming in global communication and seems to be interested in entering the GPs from 2026 by financially supporting Red Bull which has embarked on the construction of its own power unit. The US giant could get in the way of negotiations with the Japanese Honda who, in turn, have decided to subscribe to the next-generation engines. There will not only be Audi as the new brand involved in the GPs."

Ford used to be a part of the Formula 1 ecosystem with its Cosworth V8 engines but ever since a switch was made to the V6 Turbos, the manufacturer preferred not to get involved.

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A Red Bull-Ford alliance makes the most sense

For the Bulls, a partnership with Ford would make much more sense than with the Japanese company Honda. The main reason behind this is the fact that Ford itself does not hold any technical expertise, and the manufacturer will only contribute to the partnership financially and let Red Bull make the calls. This is exactly what the Milton Keynes-based squad wants.

Honda, on the other hand, would want to have a certain level of technical contribution as well on the power unit side. With Red Bull looking to build its own in-house power unit, the team arguably does not want any interference from its partner on that front.

To add to this, with a rejuvenated emphasis on the United States as a market, a partnership with Ford appears to make sense over a partnership with Honda.