Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

F1 LIVE | Verstappen disagreed with Lawson decision, Red Bull changed this name

08:30, 22 Dec

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byLuke-John Buckle

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Red Bull's name change ahead of 2026

Red Bull tweaked the name of their engine ahead of the 2026 season as the Austrian team becomes a works outfit.

The team lagged behind Mercedes in the early part of the hybrid era with Renault engines before winning world championships with Honda.

All four of Max Verstappen's world titles have come with Honda power, but the Japanese manufacturer is now partnering with Aston Martin.

Red Bull are making their own engine for the first time and teaming up with Ford from 2026.

These power units were called Red Bull Powertrains before becoming Red Bull Powertrains-Ford.

Heading into next year, the engine will now be known as Red Bull Ford, with the name shorter than previously.

Photo: Red Bull Content Pool

Verstappen didn't agree with Red Bull dropping Lawson so quickly

Verstappen has been much quicker than his teammates since the 2019 season when Pierre Gasly replaced the outgoing Daniel Ricciardo.

Sergio Perez struggled to match the Dutchman from 2021-2024 and was replaced by Liam Lawson.

The New Zealander failed to get out of Q1 in the opening two rounds of this year. Lawson was demoted to Racing Bulls and Yuki Tsunoda took his seat.

Verstappen didn't agree with Red Bull's decision to act so quickly in the opening stages of the year.

He said in an intrerview with Viaplay: "Two races, of course, for a teammate. I didn’t agree with that at the time, because in the end, you end up ruining someone’s chance at a top team.

"I have to say, Liam recovered well at Racing Bulls. You could also say: ‘Just forget about it all. I’m done with it.’ Two races are far too early to make a decision on that."

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