Renault principal Cyril Abiteboul has revealed that Red Bull's divorce from the French team was "expected", as Toro Rosso's switch to Honda was an ominous sign from a Renault point of view.
When German news outlet Auto Motor und Sport asked the Frenchman about the divorce, he explained that there are both positives and negatives when it comes to them losing their main customer.
"It's a decision that we expected," he said.
"After the separation of Toro Rosso in the first place, we had to expect that also Red Bull would follow to start a joint project with Honda."
That means Renault will just have the one costumer next season, which is McLaren, a team that's (currently) slower than Renault.
"We still have McLaren for three years.
"I see positively that the separation is a clear signal to everyone in the team that we now have to do it ourselves.
"Red Bull showed us how to race with our engine win if you build a good chassis.
"The negative thing is that Red Bull set a fantastic bar for us - the platform gave us the opportunity to compare our engine with the others."
It will be strange to see Red Bull have a different engine next season. After all, they've spent 12 years working together with Renault, winning eight titles with them in the process in the Sebastian Vettel-years. And that's what leads us to ask you this question; who will win a title first out of these two teams? Will Renault be a challenger next season, or will Red Bull finally make that final step forwards with Honda?
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