Red Bull Racing believes its partnership with Japanese car maker Infiniti will give it the chance to match bigger-money manufacturer rivals in terms of technological development over the next few years.
Although the newly announced deal is primarily a means for Infiniti to boost its worldwide brand recognition, both car company and team are hoping that there will be opportunities for technical collaboration in the future.
"As the team has evolved, it is important for us strategically, as we look to the future, to make sure we are aligned with the right partners, whether they are from a marketing perspective or elsewhere," Red Bull Racing team principal Christian Horner said. "But particularly from a Red Bull perspective, it is the technological challenges that F1 presents. As an independent team we are not battery specialists, and we are not KERS specialists. We want to focus on designing and producing F1 chassis, and if we can tap into the type of resources that Nissan and Infiniti have, that is very exciting for us."
Infiniti vp Andy Palmer believes that one of the main areas where his company can benefit Red Bull Racing is in battery technology, which will become more important as KERS use increases over the next few years.
"There are all sorts of things where there is potential to work together," he said. "We are a car company, so in consequence we have a lot of power in terms of analytical type of work.
"Obviously, Nissan is a leader in electrical vehicles so, as things move in that direction, there are opportunities to work that way. But we will see. It will be a case of wait and see. We are there to answer requests in the first instance and then we will see how it goes."