Horner pleased to retain 'strong support' from Honda

Christian Horner has expressed his satisfaction over the new agreement between Red Bull and Honda for 2022 and beyond.

It was announced on Thursday morning that Honda and Red Bull have agreed on a "programme of cooperation" from next year, covering a wide range of topics, including how the Japanese manufacturer will support the newly-formed Red Bull Powertrains.

When Honda leaves F1 at the end of the season, Red Bull Powertrains will take over the intellectual property and running of their power units.

But rather than a sudden and dramatic parting of ways, Honda are planning to "strongly support" Red Bull as the team work towards becoming a power unit manufacturer in their own right.

"Red Bull's collaboration with Honda has been enormously successful and while our relationship in Formula 1 is changing, neither of us wish for that to be the end of the story," said Red Bull team boss Horner.

"We are very pleased that our ambitious and exciting Red Bull Powertrains project will be strongly supported by Honda, technically and operationally, in 2022, and this will help ensure that Red Bull's transition to the status of chassis and power unit manufacturer is seamless.

"Equally as exciting is the news that our collaboration with Honda will extend to a variety of motorsport activities, from driver development to other racing disciplines and even across the wider sporting world.

"This stretch of Honda's Formula 1 voyage is coming to an end but together we are embarking on a new and fascinating journey."

Koji Watanabe, Chief Officer for Brand and Communication Operations at Honda, added: "I'm glad that we have reached an agreement with Red Bull Group covering all the details of the IP rights for the F1 power unit and in this way, Honda can still contribute to the motor racing world.

"We are now working hard to strengthen HRC's structure, so that it can ensure our fans will be able to continue to enjoy Honda's role in all types of motorsport."