Red Bull Racing boss Christian Horner revealed details of the meeting between the FIA, Formula One Management and the teams regarding the future of the power units in the sport.
The FIA called for a meeting in Bahrain on Friday to discuss the direction Formula 1 wants to follow with regards to future engines after the governing body's president, Mohammed Ben Sulayem floated the idea of V10 engines.
With the new 2026 power unit regulations less than a year away, the V10 topic has gathered pace and was subject to a lot of debate with stakeholders - as is customary in F1 - failing to agree on one direction.
Speaking to Sky Sports F1 after the meeting, Horner revealed: "A meeting was called by the FIA. It was a very cordial, productive meeting. The FIA president was asking for feedback about what the next generation would look like.
"2026 is absolutely fixed but thinking a bit further down the line for what's the right trajectory for F1," he claimed. "It's certainly not 2027, almost impossible for 2028, so it's all subjective.
"It's a fact finding mission at the moment, it's down to the PU manufacturer to feed back to the FIA and it will progress from there."
There have been rumors that Red Bull Powertrains, in partnership with Ford have been struggling with the 2026 power unit development. Horner was quizzed whether his team would support a shift to V10 naturally aspirated engines.
He responded: "We are building an infrastructure on the current set of regulations, so whatever the future regulations are, it needs to take into account the future resource teams have.
"We have structured our business around the current set of regulations. We are excited about 2026. It's rapidly approaching. We are making very good headway and pleased with progress.
"The romanticist in me is a screaming V10 could be really attractive for F1 but it's got to be done responsibly," the Briton admitted. "With electrification as well, is it a V10 or V8? That was really the discussion this morning, what the future potentially looks like."
FIA issue statement
The FIA issued a statement following the meeting, it said: "The FIA convened a meeting in Bahrain today [Friday] to discuss the current and future Power Unit direction for Formula 1.
"The meeting, chaired by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, the CEO of FOM Stefano Domenicali and FIA Single-Seater Director Nikolas Tombazis, was attended by representatives in person and via videoconference from Audi, Ferrari, Ford, General Motors, Honda Racing, Mercedes and Red Bull Powertrains."
The statement added: "The FIA President was keen to stress that the purpose of the gathering was to seek cost-effective solutions to safeguard the long-term sustainability of the sport and the business of Formula 1.
"The FIA has firmly committed to the 2026 Formula One regulations. The FIA technical department, together with a number of stakeholders, has invested a lot of time in the framing of the 2026 regulations on hybrid Power Units with 100% sustainable fuel.
"The 2026 regulations, governing Power Unit and chassis, have attracted new Power Unit manufacturers to the sport – underlining that for the 2026 cycle, the correct technical path has been chosen. Minor refinements and adjustments are still being constructively discussed with all stakeholders."
As for the naturally aspirated V10s, the FIA went on: "Besides the 2026 regulations, a range of options and timelines for the future were discussed. One of the topics under discussion was the adoption of normally-aspirated engines with sustainable fuel."
Focal points and outcome
The statement listed the points that were discussed which were:
- Reducing costs of research and development of F1 powertrains
- Building resilience against the fluctuations of the global economy
- Reducing the complexity of Formula 1 Power Units
- Considerations on sustainability, weight reduction in relation to safety, performance, road car relevance, sound and audience appeal
- It is always the FIA’s intention to take a decision on future engine regulations in consultation with all stakeholders to agree a way forward.
According to the FIA, the meeting was concluded with the following outcome:
- All parties are committed to the 2026 regulations and look forward to the prospect of exciting racing
- All parties agreed to continue discussions on the future technical direction of the sport
- A level of electrification will always be part of any future considerations
- The use of sustainable fuel will be an imperative
- Consideration will be given to adjustments on financial regulations relating to Power Units as part of broader cost reductions
- Policing of those regulations will be a priority
- Whichever engine roadmap is decided upon, the FIA is supportive of the teams and PU manufacturers in ensuring containment of costs of R&D expenditure, taking account of environmental considerations and acting in the best interests of the sport and the fans.
(Additional reporting by Agnes Carlier)
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