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CarbonFibre
November 14th, 2005, 11:10
"Please God let this turn out to be true! There is talk in the German media of Red Bull racing hooking up with Audi in 2008
as an engine supplier, Gerhard Berger a friend of both the head of Red Bull & VW Audi is also believed to be involved. The story transpires that Audi will be out of DTM racing in at the end of 2007, Opel are pulling out after 2006, and intend to use 2007 a development year before launching in 2008. Speculation even extends to VW Audi producing a non Audi “badged” engine & running it with the Torro Rosso squad too develop the unit in a racing environment, before bolting on to the back of a Adrian Newey car as early as 2007 or as late as 2009! A non badged engine is not entirely unheard of, early 90’s Yamaha units were a front for Toyota’s original aborted F1 attempt. Long term engine preparations for F1 entries are standard practice these days, BMW spent all of 1998 & 1999 developing their engine away from F1 before coming in with William’s in 2000 & Toyota’s two years of solid pre-entry testing on chassis & engine started with a V12!
If Audi were to enter the post 2008 world of F1 it would make a lot sense. Firstly, by that time the official FIA series will have settled down with team commitments to the FIA or a break away series would be up & running. Thus, in the coming seasons Audi would be in a be in a perfect position to judge where it should be entering a F1 effort. Secondly, entering the sport with Red Bull makes sound financial sense. After all, why go down the expensive Toyota build from scratch route or the equally expensive top dollar buyout of an existing team. a.k.a Honda/BAT or BMW/Sauber, when you can provide a block to a Adrian Newey designed flyer? Further, having rewritten Le Mans history with it’s sports car programme (how that must get up the noses of Mercedes & Toyota management) and having succeeded in every category it has ever competed in, rally, touring & sports prototypes, how long can Audi ignore the presence of the other two big German giants participation in F1?

Audi have stated publicly in the past that they would not consider F1 at its current costs, will the temptation of running with Red Bull as a engine partner only be too good a deal to miss? Fingers crossed."

I repost this after seeing it in another forum.

story:
http://www.fastmachines.com/archives/f1/003336.php

forum I saw it in:
http://www.germancarzone.com/showthread.php?t=1061

Erik
November 14th, 2005, 14:20
Ingolstadt, 14 November 2005




Award for TFSI engine of the Audi R8


Ulrich Baretzky is “Race Engine Designer of the Year”
Audi R8 winning streak convinced panel of experts
V8 power unit without single technical failure in 77 races

The Audi R8 is the most successful Le Mans prototype ever and is still the world’s only race car to combine direct fuel injection and turbo charging. For its TFSI technology, which initially established itself on the race track and, meanwhile, inspires high-volume production, Audi was honoured yet again: An international panel of experts presented Ulrich Baretzky, Head of Engine Technology at Audi Sport, with the "Race Engine Designer of the Year Award”.

"I’m very proud of this award, which I receive on behalf of my team,” explained Ulrich Baretzky at the presentation in the Royal Air Force Museum in London. "What we achieved with the R8 was genuine team effort.”

In the 77 races contested to date, the Audi R8 scored a total of 61 outright victories, won the 24 Hours of Le Mans five times and the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) six times in succession. Even more impressive is the reliability of its 3.6 litre twin-turbo V8 power unit: Since making its debut in March 2000 there was not a single engine failure during a race – an achievement, which also impressed the Race Tech World Motorsport Symposium expert panel that consists of high-profile technicians from various facets of motorsport including Formula 1.


:hahahehe:

Benman
November 14th, 2005, 16:17
If true, this would be way cool. Red Bull has always been a sponsor for Audi in the DTM series, so why not supply them with motors.:hahahehe:

Also, waiting for the F1 members decision to split or stay makes sense as well. So 2008 or 2009 would be a smart move for Audi. By then, they'll be two years into their R9 Le Mans program (so should have some more titles under their belt:D ) and may only want to invest in the engine aspect. Two years of only engine envolvement, would also give them plenty of time for R&D for their own chassis, if that is the case.

Way cool!:thumb:

Ben:addict:

Bingocaller
November 14th, 2005, 16:36
And If we are real lucky we might see Tom Kristensen in an F1 car if the Audi bosses decides to pull some stings :0:

But again in 2008 he might be "over the the top" :confused: