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Red Bull will be subject to a more lenient engine rulebook in 2027, which could prove to be a major advantage.
Before the 2026 season started, F1 teams agreed to make an ‘exception’ for Red Bull and fellow newcomers Audi with next year’s regulations.
They will have a larger allocation of internal combustion engines, turbochargers and MGU-Ks than the Mercedes, Ferrari and Honda-powered teams. Rival teams made this concession in light of their inexperience.
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The expectation was that they would suffer more with reliability, so they needed one more component across the board to maintain competitive balance. The other manufacturers are subject to a cost-driven reduction.
Red Bull’s F1 rivals underestimated them
As it turns out, Red Bull’s competitors underestimated them. The team fed into the narrative by insisting that they wouldn’t be able to match long-established manufacturers in their first season.
Red Bull may be struggling in the standings – they are already 150 points behind Mercedes with just 30 points from four races – but this reflects the limitations of their chassis, rather than a lack of power.
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Indeed, there is a growing belief that Red Bull’s engine is actually on par with Mercedes, making it the joint-best on the grid. At worst, they are second best, which still puts them ahead of Ferrari, Honda and Audi.
This is a remarkable and unforeseen achievement for a debutant. As Karun Chandhok recently pointed out, Red Bull Powertrains were working out of a ‘cabin’ just five years ago.
Why Red Bull’s extra engine components could make a key difference
The engine hasn’t been bulletproof, as evidenced by Isack Hadjar’s retirement in Australia and Max Verstappen’s DNF in China. But there have also been glitches with the Mercedes and, most notably, Honda power units.
By the time next year comes around, Red Bull should have learned enough about the new engines to iron out these failures, and yet they will still have more components at their disposal.
While the concessions weren’t designed to be a performance advantage, they should in theory allow Red Bull to run their engine more aggressively in the knowledge that they have more spare parts available. The lower mileage on each element could also make a difference.
Red Bull are unlikely to compete for either championship this year but after their first major upgrade in Miami restored their front-running status, it would be brave to rule them out in 2027. That may well be the timeline the team set internally.
If the teams knew RBPT were going to come out of the blocks at this level, they surely wouldn’t have helped them at all.
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