McLaren is reportedly contemplating the option of partnering up with Red Bull for its engine, according to a report by The Independent.
The report states that McLaren CEO Zak Brown went to Red Bull’s Milton Keynes factory to hold talks regarding the potential of a partnership with the sport’s reigning champions.
Red Bull currently uses Honda engines, but is also creating its own engine division called Red Bull Powertrains which will be used to supply AlphaTauri as soon as 2026.
The sports drink company will be helped in its venture by American car giant Ford, with whom a deal has already been signed a while ago.
As of now, McLaren relies on Mercedes to supply its engine, but this deal will end in 2025.
That gives the Woking outfit the opportunity to explore other options in the sport.
Is McLaren satisfied with Mercedes deal?
They have also spoken with Honda about the possibility of linking up, but talks reportedly stalled between the two.
“We’re very happy with Mercedes,” Brown said at the launch of the MCL60.
“We have some time to decide what we want to do in 2026 and beyond, I think it’s exciting for Formula 1 to have this many manufacturers coming into the sport.
“I think it shows the growth and excitement for the sport. It’s certainly something Andrea [Stella] and I are in the process of slowly reviewing; we’re not in a big rush and we are very happy with Mercedes, so we’ll see how things play out in the next year or so before we make a decision.”
Any deal between McLaren and Red Bull would certainly be rather unexpected, especially given the ideological differences between team bosses Brown and Christian Horner.
The duo famously had an altercation during last year’s United States Grand Prix which ended with Brown writing a letter to the FIA claiming thatt Red Bull was cheating on account of breaching the budget cap.
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