Red Bull boss Laurent Mekies has warned that the team is braced for “a few very, very tough months” as it adjusts to its new Formula 1 partnership with Ford.
The Milton Keynes-based squad enters the brand-new 50-50 hybrid era of F1 with its first in-house powertrains, developed in collaboration with the America giants.
Not only is it Red Bull Powertrains’ first production, but it is also Ford’s first involvement in F1 since selling the Jaguar Racing team to Red Bull at the end of 2024.
Its previous power unit partnership with Honda has now officially ended, with the Japanese marque making a full-time return to F1 with an exclusive partnership with Aston Martin.
Previous Team Principal Christian Horner had already set the bar low for a tricky transition, saying teams like Mercedes ought to be “embarrassed” if Red Bull beat them in 2026.
And despite indicating its strong finish to 2025 will give the team a boost for 2026, Mekies has also delivered some low expectations ahead of sport and the team’s new era.
“It would be naive to think that we are going to land it on the top spot straight away there,” the Frenchman told media including Motorsport Week at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
“So, we know we are going to have a few very, very tough months. Many sleepless nights, a few headaches, but it’s also part of the privilege to be associated with these sort of challenges.
“We’ve said it many times now, the decisions to do your own power unit, in that case for us with the support of Ford, is the craziest decisions one can take. It was probably a call that only Red Bull can make.
“We started on this field, we now have a building, we have the dynos, we have the 600 people, and we will try to fight against people that have been doing it for 90 years.
“We love the challenge; we love that idea. It’s very Red Bull, very proud to do it with Ford.”
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