Is castling in Red Bull just the first part of a secret plan?

      The news that Liam Lawson was, as they say, "thrown to the grassroots," i.e. returned to Racing Bulls, and Yuki Tsunoda was promoted to the honorary position of Max Verstappen's team-mate, if not shocked the motorsport world, then at least it was quite surprising.

      However, for the puppeteers, who, behind the screen, pull special strings and act out this show before our eyes, such a development of events not only did not come as a surprise, but, on the contrary, was largely prepared and predetermined by circumstances that are not directly related to personnel issues.

      We have learned from reliable sources that the Red Bull castling is only the first step of a secret plan, which is very complex and multi–pronged.

      What is happening needs to be viewed in a broader context, including remembering that Red Bull has recently been suspected that it is the Milton Keynes team that is lobbying for a return to naturally aspirated V10 engines. Apparently, the project to create its own hybrid power plant in alliance with Ford is stalling, and its prospects are dubious, at least for the next year or two.

      What could be the way out? Promoting a return to naturally aspirated V10s is an absurd idea, and it was launched only as a distraction. While it is being discussed in the paddock and the press, and there are mostly puzzled intonations, the Red Bull management is conducting behind-the-scenes negotiations with Honda.

      Both Red Bull teams have long-standing business relationships with the Japanese corporation, whose engines are rightfully considered among the best in Formula 1, and it is likely that Honda engine builders will not let them down next year, when the World Championship will switch to new technical regulations.

      But the problem is that Honda has already signed a contract with Aston Martin, and the next-generation power plants have already been promised to the Lawrence Stroll team. However, as you know, Red Bull employs great masters of various kinds of political maneuvers, and it seems that they are trying to find a way to enlist the technological support of Honda at least in the medium term.

      Therefore, to begin with, Tsunoda was transferred to Red Bull Racing, so to speak, as an advance, which was really facilitated by Lawson's frankly weak results. And Yuki is a Honda racer, and this trump card is now being played out in full during secret negotiations.

      An offer has been made to the Japanese side: Tsunoda will continue to remain at Red Bull Racing, but on condition that the RBPT engine-building division receives all the necessary assistance in the development and production of that very "own" power plant. That is, we are talking about a whole complex of know-how that will allow the newly-minted engine builders to make a sharp leap forward.

      Of course, in order to implement this plan, we still have to somehow come to an agreement with Ford, because the partnership with Red Bull has long been announced, it is somehow developing, and at the same time, the American corporation is a direct competitor to Honda in global markets.

      But Red Bull has come up with a clever marketing ploy: their power plants will be branded in a special way.

      It is possible that they will be released under the new Fonda brand. On the one hand, the names of both corporations can be guessed in this word, on the other, it says a lot to cinema fans, because it evokes associations with the legendary American acting dynasty (Henry Fonda and his daughter Jane Fonda) and will impress the widest audience.

      It's a small matter: to find a common language with all parties – with Honda, with Ford, with the Foundation family and, of course, with Lawrence Stroll, whose interests may be infringed in this scenario. But if you back up the negotiation process with significant financial injections, then the probability of success is non-zero, despite the complexity of the task.

      F1News.ru He will be curious to follow the next acts of this show and analyze them as the news comes in.