With less than a season remaining before the 2026 regulations reset kicks in, the FIA has been swarmed with complaints and issues that could ruin the fabric of the sport. The latest era of F1 will completely overhaul the power unit side of things but it seems like manufacturers have lost faith in the project already.
One of the biggest concerns some engine manufacturers have is the fact that the 50-50 electrical and combustion formula for the new engines might not work out well during races. It is a belief that on power-sensitive tracks such as Monza, the engine might exhaust all its power even before reaching the end of the straights.
The suggestion floating around is to tweak the division between the electric and thermal output to 45-55 on Sundays, and leave the 50-50 format as it is during qualifying sessions. This is going to be the topic of discussion in the next F1 commission meeting.
However, Mercedes F1 boss Toto Wolff is among the few who see no problems with the regulations and cannot understand why the FIA is even contemplating changing the regulations time and again so deep into the developmental cycle.
“Reading the agenda of the F1 commission is almost as funny as reading some of the comments I see on Twitter about American politics. I really want to protect ourselves and not make comments, but it’s a joke,” said Wolff during the Saudi Arabian GP weekend as quoted by Soy Motor.
Toto Wolff says that the proposal to reduce F1 2026 hybrid deployment is a joke:
“Reading the agenda of the F1 commission is almost as hilarious as reading some of the comments that I see on Twitter on American politics.”
I really want to protect ourselves and make no… pic.twitter.com/sWmVN87hPR
— Mercedes Hub (@MercedesF1_Hub) April 21, 2025
The Silver Arrows are touted to lead the field in terms of engine development next season, as evidenced by their acing of the regulations back in 2014 when the turbo-hybrid V6 engines were introduced. Naturally, Wolff doesn’t want to change the formula that his team might have already aced going into 2026.
But not everyone in the paddock agrees with the efficacy of the 2026 rules. Drivers like Max Verstappen have already called out the shortcomings in these rules.
“At the moment, to me, it [2026 regulations] looks very bad from all the numbers and what I see from the data already, so it’s not something I’m very excited about at the moment,” the Dutchman had said back in 2023.
At the same time, the FIA is also considering to ditch the five-year cycle of the latest power units completely. Instead, FIA President, Mohammed Ben Sulayem has been pushing for the return of V10 engines as soon as the 2029 season.
Ben Sulayem’s suggestion has faced staunch opposition from the likes of Audi, who had hitched their entry into the sport on the understanding that the future of F1 was going the hybrid way.
However, a possible return to V10s has gone down well with the drivers. Williams’ Carlos Sainz said, “I wouldn’t be too vocal supporting the comeback of a V10 engine if I liked what I saw from 2026.”
His former Ferrari teammate, Charles Leclerc has also echoed the same sentiments. “I think V10s would be great. What I’ve been seeing for next year is something that is not particularly exciting for me. I will say most of us share the same opinion,” revealed the #16 driver.
As things stand, there is no clarity as to what the teams and the FIA will decide with less than eight months remaining for the 2026 regulations to officially come into effect. One thing’s certain: the decision is going to leave some or other stakeholder disgruntled.
