Should Red Bull Sacrifice Toro Rosso's Season?
Toro Rosso eighth in the Championship with the Honda Power Units
Red Bull were rumoured to be instructing Honda to push on with Toro Rosso upgrades and ignore the issue of penalties in an effort to have their power units ready for next year, however Team Principal Christian Horner insists this is not the case.
With Red Bull's 'junior' team Toro Rosso already acting as a sort of tester team for Honda's power units, talk was that the Austrian team were ready to tell Honda to push on with development at all costs, even if it required Toro Rosso taking grid penalties until the end of the season.
Christian Horner has however refuted these claim as he spoke ahead of the German grand prix, saying: "I don't think we'll be pushing them to sacrifice Toro Rosso.
"But obviously there are opportunities to learn for the benefit of the group, which ultimately Toro Rosso will benefit from as well.
"That's obviously something that remains open, but of course Toro Rosso have got their own fight with the constructors they're competing with, that obviously has significant value to them."
It will be interesting to see if this is the correct call, with Pierre Gasly saying he felt down on power compared to the rest of the field.
While taking away Toro Rosso's opportunity to compete may be harsh on drivers and staff, it could be a great opportunity to make both Red Bull and Toro Rosso more competitive next season.
Brendon Hartley may not be around next season to benefit, but I think the opportunity to basically test new power units for next year is something which could help develop Gasly, making him more able to adapt to a car that delivers power in different ways. It also gives staff the opportunity to practice or at least plan integration of a new power unit.
I feel it has almost been forgotten that Toro Rosso will benefit next season from a better Honda engine next season, and that they are currently struggling in the constructors' championship as it is, so it may be a case of the sacrifice being way smaller then the benefit.
I am a Red Bull fan and that makes me a Toro Rosso fan too, as they are a look at what is to come for the main team, so I do want to see Toro Rosso be as competitive as possible but I feel the opportunity to develop for next year, for both teams' sake, is a one too good to pass up.