OFFICIAL: Red Bull signs with Honda for 2019 and 2020!

So they chose to take the plunge. To leave the familiar environment of a marriage of 12 seasons crowned so far with 8 world titles, 57 Grand Prix victories, 152 podiums and 59 pole positions.

Heading towards factory status which its junior team has been enjoying since the end of 2017. Red Bull will therefore run on Honda from 2019, with the financial advantages that this entails and the sporting questions that this raises.

Because the manufacturer of Sakura has not really shone since his return to F1, even if progress with Toro Rosso are notable this year. Red Bull in any case deemed them sufficient to take the plunge.

« This multi-annual agreement with Honda marks the starting point of a new phase full of promise in our efforts to win in races but also in the championship., said Christian Horner, boss of Red Bull Racing.

We have always made this type of decision in a dispassionate manner with performance as the sole criterion., After carefully studying and evaluating the situation, we are convinced that this new partnership is the best way forward.

We have been impressed by their commitment and determination, as well as their recent progress with our sister team Toro Rosso. Their ambitions correspond to our objectives and we can't wait to start this association to seek the highest rewards with Honda ».

The announcement was initially to take place at home at the Austrian Grand Prix, once the engine development data was provided by Renault and Honda in Canada digested and analyzed. It finally fell on Tuesday morning under pressure from the French manufacturer who accelerated the timetable by setting the start of this week as the last carat.

The decision will also have an impact on the pilots' front as Carlos Sainz is loaned to Renault by Red Bull and that the future of Daniel Ricciardo beyond 2018 is not yet known either.