Christian Horner and Zak Brown eyeing mega engine partnership

McLaren are reportedly considering entering a shock engine partnership with Red Bull just months after team principal Zak Brown suggested the energy drink giant had ‘cheated’ by breaching the cost cap rules. The Woking-based outfit’s engines are currently supplied by Mercedes but the team are weighing up their options for 2026 and beyond with the American willing to put his rivalry with Christian Horner to one side. 

Horner and Brown have not always seen eye-to-eye in the paddock with the McLaren boss one of Red Bull’s most vocal critics after they were found to be in breach of the sport’s budget cap rules this year. 

However, their rivalry appears to now be on the backburner with the Press Association reporting that McLaren are now considering a partnership with Red Bull’s Powertrains. Brown has already visited the manufacturer’s engine division earlier this month as he weighs up his team’s options in 2026. 

New engine rules will be introduced this year and it also coincides with Red Bull’s new engine project with Ford with the American carmaker helping on the research and development side in return for advertising. 

Honda currently supplies Red Bull’s engines despite formally withdrawing from the sport in 2021. Other reports have suggested that the Japanese brand could be a potential partner for McLaren in 2026 with Mercedes continuing to supply the team with their engines in the meantime. 

JUST IN: Lewis Hamilton backs up George Russell after first drive of new car

Talks between Red Bull and McLaren remain at an early stage with no real-time pressure for the team to make a decision. However, Brown’s presence at his rival’s headquarters in Milton Keynes is an interesting development especially given his tense relationship with Horner. 

The 51-year-old argued Red Bull’s cost cap breach ‘constituted cheating’ in an angry letter to the FIA last year. The energy drink company was not referred to by name but as one of the only teams under investigation, the accusation was not well received by Horner and co. 

“The overspend breach, and possibly the procedural breaches, constitute cheating by offering a significant advantage across technical, sporting and financial regulations,” he wrote in the letter seen and reported by the BBC. “The FIA has run an extremely thorough, collaborative and open process. We have even been given a one-year dress rehearsal (in 2020), with ample opportunity to seek any clarification if details were unclear. So, there is no reason for any team to now say they are surprised.

DON’T MISS

“The bottom line is any team who has overspent has gained an unfair advantage both in the current and following year’s car development.” 

It remains to be seen if anything will come from the initial talks with plenty of time for McLaren to come to a decision before 2026. In the meantime, both parties’ full focus will be the upcoming Formula One season with testing getting underway in Bahrain on Thursday before lights out in the first race of the season at the same track next Sunday.