Mekies Reveals Why Red Bull Won't Supply Engines to Other Teams Yet

Red Bull Powertrains has awakened unexpected interest in the paddock: its power unit, the first that the Austrian brand develops independently in association with Ford, has generated positive unsolicited publicity that has drawn the attention of several teams; however, Laurent Mekies, Red Bull boss, has wanted to stop any speculation about a possible supply to third parties and has given a clear answer: they are not ready yet.

"We received a lot of positive unsolicited publicity about our engine's performance, and that undoubtedly drew the attention of many teams. Are we having serious conversations with anyone to supply engines to another team? No, we don't feel ready for that. Is it something defined for the next five years? Neither, because I don't know what will happen in the next five years," Mekies declared during the press conference in Austin. The Frenchman was blunt, pointing out that the current priority is the main team and Racing Bulls, and that any future expansion will depend on their ability to reach the level of the best.

The news of a possible interest from Aston Martin emerged at the end of August, when the Italian portal AutoRacer reported that Lawrence Stroll was dissatisfied with the Honda engine's performance and was considering the possibility of initiating conversations with Mercedes or Red Bull for 2028, however the Aston Martin owner seeks to give the Japanese manufacturer one more chance in 2027, so any change would occur in the medium term, the most recent version of the Honda power unit, introduced at the Dutch Grand Prix, showed some evolution in power delivery but also new drivability and gear change problems that led Fernando Alonso to state that the team had "returned to the starting point".

Despite Honda's difficulties, Red Bull is in no hurry to become a supplier to other teams; its focus is on perfecting the integration between the chassis and the engine, an aspect in which they still have room for improvement: "Without a doubt, we have a lot of work ahead to improve the power unit, perfect the integration with the car, and reach the level of the best rivals before considering the possibility of supplying engines to another team in addition to Racing Bulls; therefore, nothing will change next year or in the coming months," Mekies added.

Red Bull's decision reflects a prudent business philosophy: rather than expand hastily and take unnecessary risks, the team prefers to consolidate its project before opening up to new customers. Competition in Formula 1 is fierce, and Red Bull knows that any error in managing its engine program could have serious consequences.

Its priority is clear: first dominate, get on the right path in F1, position itself as one of the best teams of the moment, and then sell, meanwhile the interest of other teams remains, and time will tell if Red Bull is willing to share its technology or if it prefers to keep its competitive advantage secret.