Ralf Schumacher shares Red Bull 2026 claim Christian Horner ‘personally’ told him is ‘nonsense’

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Red Bull are in the middle of arranging a transition from Honda power to their own from 2026 onwards, which is a very tricky task.

Both Renault and Honda struggled to master the current engine regulations for years, while Ferrari took a while to get up to speed too.

Mercedes are the only team that seems to manage to hit the ground running every time, and that’s partly down to their years of experience.

Red Bull’s first foray into building their own power unit will be at the start of a new set of regulations – giving them very little room for error, and placing emphasis on being able to hit the ground running.

Christian Horner calls Red Bull 2026 engine claims ‘nonsense’

They have their own example in recent memory that displays how quickly a dominant operation can be turned around by a poor engine – back in 2014 as an unreliable Renault power unit helped to end their run of four consecutive championship doubles.

The team will want to avoid a similar fate at all costs, and rumours have circulated around the paddock that they are already struggling with their 2026 operations – something which team boss Christian Horner has denied to Ralf Schumacher.

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“They want to win the world title,” Schumacher told Formel1.de on YouTube. “It’s also a fact at Red Bull that you don’t just come from 2026 onwards – that Pierre Wache maybe not that good yet [the Red Bull power unit].

“As expected, it remains to be seen that the current technical director at Red Bull, who has his own development of the drive, especially the electrical side, there still seems to be a bit of a problem if you listen to the team.

“Christian Horner told me personally that’s nonsense, that’s not the case.”

Why Red Bull have a lot on their plate currently

Christian Horner has had to wave goodbye to Adrian Newey this year, and cope with the team’s downturn in results on-track.

There has also been pressure in the form of rumours that Max Verstappen may leave the team to join Mercedes in 2026, but that’s no longer an issue.

In fact, despite their poor current form, the team is still together and appear ready to give the remaining eight races of the season their best go.

READ MORE: How Christian Horner reacted when asked about Adrian Newey’s move to Aston Martin

They’re in desperate need of upgrades, and may even be the fourth-fastest team in Formula 1 now, but they have the great miracle worker in Verstappen behind the wheel and a 62-point drivers’ championship advantage.

If they can return to the podium at most events, it may just be enough to retain one of their titles – with the constructors’ set to be handed to McLaren.