The sliding doors moment that saved Red Bull and Porsche

The festive period is generally regarded as a time to be with friends and family. But Red Bull probably appreciates being all by itself just now. Better that than try to struggle on with a relationship where there’s irreconcilable difference or seek a divorce. However, behind a set of sliding doors, that’s a scenario which was very nearly presented to the constructors’ champion.

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A close call with a winter of discontent was inspired by events at the height of summer. In July of this year, all eyes were on a trip to Austria. With the German Grand Prix falling off the Formula 1 calendar after 2019, it was on Red Bull home turf that a partnership with Porsche would be announced.

This deal - one of many open secrets in the paddock in 2022 - would lead to major investment in the fledgling Milton Keynes powertrains programme and a 50% buy-in of the actual race team. Given Red Bull co-founder Dietrich Mateschitz’s declining health at the time, the anticipated 10-year tie-up marked a major step in securing his team’s future.

According to some sources, the Red Bull and Porsche-headed press release was written and waiting in the ‘Drafts’ folder. Someone just needed to hit send. That said, Christian Horner did press home the need for both parties to take their time to iron out any potential ideological clashes. Nevertheless, it seemed to be very much a case of ‘when’ and not ‘if. Remember also the Moroccan legal documents that stated a 4 August date for the deal to be formally announced.

The arrival of Porsche and then sister marque Audi would be a critical validation of the new-for-2026 engine regulations. With the Volkswagen Group having once again sat at the table when the rules were being devised, F1 was shortly about to bin off the expensive MGU-H, adopt more electrical power, fully sustainable fuel and introduced a power unit cost cap.

The framework for the new package had been agreed to by current and prospective entrants. But, at the 11th hour, new FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem wanted to satisfy himself that all the Is were dotted and Ts crossed before the final wording was signed off. This delay lasted for several weeks until the governing body went public with the regulations on 16 August.

Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing RB18

Photo by: Erik Junius

When Audi then leapfrogged Porsche to announcing its F1 participation 10 days later at the Belgian GP, it was clear that the romance was beginning to turn sour. Then, on 9 September, the Stuttgart giant issued a brief statement saying that the wedding was off.

However, without that delay from the top, it is widely regarded that Red Bull and Porsche would have gone forward and announced their intentions to partner up – the PR coup of doing it at the Red Bull Ring proving too much to ignore. Therefore, had the union gone public, how both parties might have lived to regret it.

With the extra time afforded by the deferral of the final regulations, Red Bull and Porsche were able to determine that their culture clash would have been too fundamental to overcome. Chiefly, Porsche would have understandably wanted to have put its own people at the top of the F1 project.

According to some sources, the Red Bull and Porsche-headed press release was written and waiting in the ‘Drafts’ folder. Someone just needed to hit send

That had the potential to marginalise Horner and add a level of boardroom bureaucracy that would have only slowed down the operation as approval was sought both sides of the Channel. Nimble, provocative, creative Red Bull was under threat.

But if there hadn’t have been the delay to the 2026 F1 regulations – for which the Volkswagen Group waited just to make sure there wasn’t an unwelcome surprise that might throw a spanner in the works – where would we be now?

One alternative is that Red Bull contract lawyers would have worked all through the night to go over the small print to find an exit clause. But the announcement that the deal was off would have marked a major PR disaster for both.

Or the team that was charging its way back to the top of F1 could’ve been forced to change its working practices considerably. That would have made for one unhappy, and potentially uncompetitive, union. Think the more recent 2015-2017 McLaren-Honda disaster where it only took one party to be obstructive to the other for the whole project to become the butt of many a joke.

Porsche F1 car render

Photo by: Camille Debastiani