Carlos Sainz Jr. goes to Renault in the 2018 Formula One season. In addition, McLaren gets Renault engines, and Toro Rosso obtains Honda power. But who will benefit from all this?
There have been many deals in the world of sports that have been very confusing to not only the media covering it, but also the fans witnessing the situation. One of them recently occurred in the world of Formula One racing, when a deal recently made by three teams pretty much set the scene for what could happen in 2018.
For one, the big winners here could be the Renault Formula One team, who will obtain a new seat for Spaniard Carlos Sainz Jr. , who will transfer over to join Nico Hulkenberg.
But that is not the only thing going on. In return, another team was seen at the motor home of the French squad to discuss an engine deal during the Italian Grand Prix, which Renault has no relation to, and that was McLaren. The Woking-based team in England had three seasons of unsuccessful results with the Honda Motor Car company.
This season, the Japanese manufacturer initiated a brand new engine, but with disastrous consequences. Another big reason for these talks was another Spaniard, Fernando Alonso, who was frustrated with having many non-finishes in grand prix races.
It came down to drama a few weeks ago: if Honda would remain as the engine supplier to McLaren, Alonso, in his final season with the team, might go somewhere else, maybe even for a full-time IndyCar ride overseas. But any change in the engine department, especially with another manufacturer, could provoke Alonso to stay for maybe the rest of his F1 career at McLaren. It was either Alonso or Honda.
Cue Renault
Cue in Renault. Since the team could not supply any more than three teams, it seemed like the deal with McLaren was impossible. However, Alonso is still one of the most popular drivers in the sport, and even at 36, still has enough time for what he wants most: a third world title. Toro Rosso could easily have shunned this deal for history, but for some reason, this didn’t happen. Toro Rosso was getting complaints from Sainz that he wanted to go to another team.
But since Toro Rosso is linked to Red Bull, it would be impossible to achieve this. But Red Bull, who have had almost enough of the Renault engines despite winning six races since 2014, felt that if the Honda power could help Toro Rosso in 2018, then the senior team could obtain the same engines the following year.
It just so happened that when the deal was being negotiated with McLaren that Renault announced that they would not be supplying engines to Red Bull and Toro Rosso after 2018. This was a real indication that with the Renault deal becoming free soon that the French unit could supply McLaren soon enough. But this was for 2019, not next season. And to keep Alonso from leaving soon, something had to be done.
Now for the loser in this deal: Jolyon Palmer. Since the Briton was not doing well for the Renault team this season, he could be replaced by someone else. Back to Sainz. Since the Spaniard was itching to leave and Palmer’s spot was open, Sainz could go there, but only as a loan for one season since Red Bull could use him in the future if either Max Verstappen or Daniel Ricciardo leave the team. Now with Sainz out to Renault and McLaren desperately wanting to hang onto Alonso, someone had to take the bait.
The bait
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Cue in bait: Toro Rosso. McLaren is a popular team, and to keep Alonso, Renault was the only possible replacement in the engine department since they are the only group that are free for supplying if they find themselves with an opening. If the deal can be done with McLaren, then where does the Honda engine go? Can they find a team to supply, or are the days of F1 over for them?
This brings back Toro Rosso. With Honda power in their hands, this could be great if the engine works well since Red Bull is set to get it in 2019 to replace Renault. So in a nutshell, this is how this deal goes: Sainz, to cover for Renault, goes to the French team to free up a spot for Honda, who probably will hire a Japanese driver for Toro Rosso. McLaren takes Renault engines to replace their Honda power, which might be purchased in 2019 by Red Bull if it works for Toro Rosso. Ironically, Palmer got his first points in Singapore, finishing 6th and Alonso still has to officially sign for McLaren for another season.
Are we all confused? Many people still might be.
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