A crisis engulfe๊d Red Bull, after their domination ended and Mer⛎cedes took over, about which direction to go under the 2014 engine regulations.

Their suppliers Renault were almost replaced by Volkswagen (who own Audi) until a deal fell apart due to a scan🅠dal.

“It wasn’t obvious, the way👍 out,” team principal Christian Horner t🀅old thepodcast about their engine problems during Mercedes’ years on top.

“Everyone got used to winningꩲ, and suddenly you’re not winning. And nobody lik🤡es that.

“ღWe lost Vettel. Even the owners were saying: ‘Maybe we will sell the tꦅeam, maybe we will sell to Audi’.

“The shareholders, for the first time ever, Dietrich was saying ‘we can’t do this, we need an [original e🎉quipment manufacturer]’.

“Thankfully, Dieselgate came along and it stopped th💫at deal.”

Dieselgate was a scandal surꩵrounding Volkswꦑagen’s emissions in 2015 which scuppered any plans they had to enter F1.

“But we came that💎 close to being Audi,” Horner remembered.

Eleven years later, 𝔍Audi will join F1 by buying a stake in Sauber, who will become their works entry.

Red Bull missed the chance to work with Au💞di but changed their trajectory by finding a different powerhouse𝓰 to supply their engines.

“Then Honda 🐽came along. It was a risk but a calculated risk,” Horner said.

“We did a season with Toro Rosso first, the engine w💟as🥃 getting better and better. 

“The Honda guys had as much invested as we d🅰id, for it to work.

“The product was coming, their heritage in the sport was 🦋fantastic.

“We decided to go for it. It all came good.

“There was nothing to lose. The💖 engine was no worse than Renault, and there was a lot more commiཧtment that they were prepared to make.

“The safe option was to stay with what we knew, every year the Renault guys promisinꩲg us better. They’re still in the same situation now.

“Whereas Honda backed it up by inves🍸ting. They knew, when they got Red Bull as a partner🐈, the expectation was sky high.”

Red Bull then created their Powertrains power unit manufacturing unit in 2021. They will continue t𒁃o use Honda-produced engines until 2026.