Ford Racing global director Mark Rushbrook said the words of Mercedes boss Toto Wolff are \u201ctrue\u201d regarding the Red Bull Powertrains-Ford engine.<\/p>\n
Wolff described it as a \u201cMount Everest\u201d project for the new engine manufacturer, and while Rushbrook does not argue that, he believes that Red Bull-Ford is \u201cin a good place\u201d ahead of the hotly-anticipated new season. Rushbrook believes that any engine deficit would be \u201cslight\u201d, and not serve as a hinderance.<\/p>\n
Red Bull-Ford \u2018in a good place\u2019 belief for F1 2026<\/p>\n
One of the biggest regulatory shake-ups which the sport has seen comes into force for the upcoming season. There are sweeping changes on both the chassis and engine sides.<\/p>\n
Red Bull<\/a> has teamed up with Ford to become one of five engine manufacturers alongside Mercedes, Ferrari, Honda and fellow newcomer to the scene Audi.<\/p>\n Mercedes team principal and one-third owner Toto Wolff has warned that it would be unwise to take Red Bull lightly, this a team which has amassed 14 world championship wins.<\/p>\n Yet, as Red Bull takes the plunge in becoming an engine manufacturer for the first time, working alongside Ford, Wolff spoke of the enormity of the challenge.<\/p>\n \u201cThis project is like climbing Mount Everest,\u201d said Wolff about Red Bull Powertrains-Ford, when speaking with De Telegraaf.<\/p>\n \u201cThey are taking on manufacturers with decades of experience.<\/p>\n \u201cBut everyone joked when Red Bull entered the sport too. It was like an energy drink manufacturer taking on Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren. Well, they\u2019ve won quite a lot.<\/p>\n \u201cBut given the complexity of the engines, I do think it will be a huge challenge for them.\u201d<\/p>\n Rushbrook responded to Wolff\u2019s comments when speaking with Motorsport.com.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat Toto said is true, right?\u201d Rushbrook stated. \u201cIt\u2019s true in the sense that this is new a start-up.<\/p>\n \u201cBut, it\u2019s a combination of people coming in from different programs. We think we\u2019re in a good place, but we will only see the full picture once we\u2019re on track.\u201d<\/p>\n Should Red Bull-Ford see any deficit on the internal combustion engine compared to rivals, Rushbrook believes \u201cit would only be slight.<\/p>\n \u201cBecause yes, existing engine manufacturers have all those years of experience, but it\u2019s still a bit different again with these rules for 2026. And we\u2019ve got a lot of experienced people that came in from other programs to find it together.<\/p>\n \u201cSo even if we\u2019re a little bit behind with the combustion engine, we don\u2019t think it\u2019s going to be by much, and we\u2019ll make up for it in everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n More on F1 2026 from PlanetF1.com<\/p>\n What we most want to see in F1 2026<\/a><\/p>\n F1 2026 cars: What name has each team given its chassis for the 2026 season?<\/a><\/p>\n Former Red Bull senior advisor Helmut Marko, when speaking with PlanetF1.com and other accredited media, called it a \u201cnew way for Red Bull Racing\u201d in partnership with Ford.<\/p>\n He added: \u201cWe were forced to do that when Honda stopped. One year later, they decided, no, they keep going. But that was too late. We had already invested. And also our combustion engine at that time was running.\u201d<\/p>\n Red Bull\u2019s four-time World Champion Max Verstappen will be partnered by new teammate Isack Hadjar in F1 2026.<\/p>\n Additional reporting by Mat Coch and Thomas Maher<\/p>\n Want to be the first to know exclusive information from the F1 paddock? Join our broadcast channel on WhatsApp<\/a> to get the scoop on the latest developments from our team of accredited journalists.<\/p>\n You can also subscribe to the PlanetF1 YouTube channel<\/a> for exclusive features, hear from our paddock journalists with stories from the heart of Formula 1 and much more!<\/p>\n