Could Porsche’s F1 Bid Collapse Before It’s Begun?

The F1 season is back following its summer break, and with a slew of revelations ranging from Alonso’s pending move to Aston Martin, to question marks over the future of Daniel Ricciardo’s seat, it’s looking as if the second half of the season has plenty of surprises in store. Sadly, Red Bull’s ongoing domination does not appear to be on the cards.

While Ferrari’s loyal fanbase will no doubt be making use the free bet offers provided by comparison platforms such as OddsChecker to back The Prancing Horse on the road to Abu Dhabi, it’s beginning to look as if Red Bull and racing prodigy Max Verstappen are firmly on track to repeat last year’s Driver’s Championship victory.

The other big news in the paddock of late is the long-awaited arrival of the first of the Volkswagen Group’s historic entries into the sport following the settlement of 2026’s new engine regulations. Audi announced their arrival in bombastic fashion with a show-car decked out in a stunning livery sporting Audi’s fluorescent red colorway.

Yet people are now wondering about the fate of the other VW brand slated to enter the sport in 2026, Porsche.

Red Bull and Porsche

For many months there has been talk of Porsche planning on entering the sport as an engine supplier working with Red Bull, with the assumption being that the German sports car manufacturer will be seeking a 50% stake in Red Bull Racing to cement their commitment to, and definitive arrival in, Formula One.

However question marks are now being raised about the likelihood of this outcome with team principal Christian Horner and Chief Technical Officer Adrian Newey expressing a degree of reticence about such a deal.

This points to an internicence split within the hierarchy of Red Bull’s racing operation, with Red Bull CEO Dietrich Mateschitz allegedly being the one enthusiastically pushing for a Porsche deal to lessen the financial and technical load placed on Red Bull alone in running the team.

However the Milton Keynes based contingent headed by Horner seem less than thrilled about the idea of ceding control of the operation, especially in light of their recent founding of Red Bull Powertrains – their in-house engine manufacturing operation being developed in a legacy arrangement with Honda.

The Honda Question

Honda have provided engines for Red Bull since 2019, yet in 2021 they announced their official departure from the sport citing a desire to refocus company resources on renewable technology. While members of Honda’s board are thought to be strongly opposed to any thought of returning to F1, Honda is a team that has entered – and exited – the sport, arguably more times than any other.

Some among the Honda top brass are apparently receptive to F1’s rising popularity, especially in the States, and are reportedly open to exploring their options for a return to the sport. Whether that’s in the sense of continuing their engine-developer relationship with Red Bull, or as a new works team is unknown at present.

Furthermore, rumors of Red Bull’s sister team, AlphaTauri (formerly Toro Rosso) potentially looking for new buyers could well play into Honda’s hands, and would streamline a re-entry into the sport as a constructor.

All or Nothing

While this is all largely conjecture at present, many were expecting the Porsche / Red Bull partnership to be an all-but-done deal, especially in light of leaked documents pointing to contract drafts already working out the fine print.

Few could have predicted that Audi, who has committed to entering the sport as a full works team following a planned buyout of Sauber (currently Alfa Romeo) ahead of the 2026 season, would beat Porsche to the punch in this respect. This has only fueled questions around whether Porsche’s route to an F1 entry is actually as simple as many thought it would be.

Should the deal fall through, it’s questionable whether Porsche would attempt to enter the sport at all, as to do so would require allying themselves with a far less successful team, a prospect that is unlikely to appeal to an organization with the motorsport pedigree of Porsche.