Red Bull boss Christian Horner believes Formula One's next engine regulations should focus on providing entertainment, rather than a platform for car manufacturers to develop new technologies.
The sport's current engine formula has been criticised since its introduction in 2014 for providing overly complex engines that do not produce the screaming exhaust note that become synonymous with F1 in the 1990s and 2000s. The regulations were designed to tempt more manufacturers into the sport by shifting to turbocharged hybrid engines, but despite impressive gains in fuel efficiency, only Honda has returned since 2014.
The current engine agreement runs until 2020, bringing about the possibility for change at the end of the decade. Former Mercedes team boss Ross Brawn recently told ESPN that F1 is now at a crossroads as it decides whether to continue on a path that leads towards electric motors or bring back the entertainment factor of screaming naturally-aspirated engines.
Horner is in little doubt which way he thinks the sport should go, but says it will ultimately be a decision for the Formula One Group -- which is due to come under new ownership in the coming weeks.
"I think the commercial rights holder needs to dictate that because he's got to sell a product," Horner told ESPN. "For me F1 should be entertainment first and technology should play a secondary role. So for me, I would prefer to go back to a normally-aspirated, screaming V10 engine with a standard energy recovery system. That might not be what Mercedes or Honda would vote for, but would it be more appealing to the fans? I believe it would be.
"I think the technology we have now is so complex that people don't understand the complexity, and we don't do a great job of advertising what these cars are currently achieving either. I think the sound is a key factor and a key part of the DNA of Formula One. You only have to listen to the McLaren-Honda V10 they fired up at the grand prix in Japan [last year], they did a couple of demonstration laps and every mechanic in the garage put his tools down to come and look and listen -- that's what Formula One should be. The commercial rights holder has to decide what it wants."
There is a concern within the sport that making a backwards step with engine technology would result in car manufacturers such as Mercedes, Honda and Renault walking away from F1. But Horner argues the regulations should be framed to entertain fans rather than suit the marketing objectives of car manufacturers.
"I think the manufacturers, as Bernie [Ecclestone]'s often said, will come and go as they want. So building a formula around suiting just manufacturers is unhealthy. The manufacturers will choose to be in F1 just if it suits them and it gives the commercial return and advertising platform for their product.
"So, I think, bending yourself out of shape for manufacturers that have a history of leaving and rejoining as and when it suits isn't the right one for Formula One."
Red Bull's involvement as a team owner stretches back to 2005, but Horner says F1's technology has never been the main appeal for the energy drinks manufacturer.
"Formula One is the biggest sporting platform outside of the Olympics and World Cup, so it's a great global platform. For the Red Bull brand, the product needs to be exciting, accessible and aspirational. Formula One needs to tick all those boxes, and for us, unlike a manufacturer, the technology is secondary to the entertainment -- we want Formula One to be an entertaining show, and in many respects the technology is a necessary evil to be competitive.
"Of course, it can't be all show and no technology -- but it's about finding that balance. As I say, we'd far prefer to have cars that have a strong emotional impact on the viewer and the spectator by making drivers the heroes."
Horner believes this year's chassis and bodywork regulation changes will go some way to achieving that, but says the new cars' visual appeal will not be matched by noise they create.
"The 2017 car looks great. It looks like a Formula One car should look. The only thing we need to address going forward is the acoustics, the sound."