F1 open to radical overhaul after major manufacturer shift

F1 chief Stefano Domenicali has explained how the championship and power unit manufacturers are open to "different" power units in the future.

The current 50-50 hybrid units were unveiled in 2022 in a bid to entice new manufacturers to grand prix racing, with Audi committing as a works team and Ford joining as technical partner to Red Bull Powertrains. 

General Motors will be developing its own power unit for 2029 for Cadillac, whilst Honda was also convinced to rejoin as a works squad, partnering with Aston Martin, with the rules designed to be road-relevant for the OEMs. 

Previously, in the mid 2010s, the old normally aspirated V8 machines were replaced by the 1.6L V6 turbo hybrids of 2014 as the road market focused on hybrid technology.

However, in the modern day, there has been a shift towards sustainable and renewable fuels, with F1 fuel in 2026 being 100% sustainable, giving hope that V8 or V10 engines, last used in 2005, could make a return and run on the new fuels. 

Explaining F1's position, Domenicali detailed how a shift in the "ecosystem" of manufacturers meant such discussions were now possible, with the Italian keen for F1 to continue its history of pushing and advancing new technologies.

"To be honest, it is not a problem," Domenicali told The Race when asked if F1 needed to be better prepared at identifying potential consequences of rule changes in the future.

"There has been a reason why we had to go in this direction; we wouldn't be talking about Formula 1, and there's no manufacturer ready to engage.

"But now, the manufacturers have understood that the future power units in motorsport could be different, and it is something which is part of the evolution of the relationship, and the ecosystem has changed so quickly that it is impressive.

"But on the other side, I don't see it as problematic, and there is always an opportunity to understand how to maximise the performance, and at the end of the day, the focus is on who is the best driver with the best technical product that is available, which has been discussed with the different stakeholders.

"And I think nothing has changed. If you look at the past comments, every time there has been a change of regulations, there have been a lot of things related to why you did it, but at the end of the day, people want to see the best drivers managing and handling things the best way they can.

"From a technical perspective, there has been a great evolution, and if you look in the past versus today, one of the new things which is in the nature of our business is to bring attention to developing technology to be used in F1.

"So that will still be the focus, and I think the lesson we are taking is that this is the future, this is what has always been happening, and the good things everyone is able to do is engage and try to improve things for the focus of the fans.

"Our focus is the fans, and if we miss that, it will just be a technical exercise that is not really relevant for the vast majority."

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'F1 discussions should not be too technical'

Domenicali is adamant that F1 "is in great shape" and despite the criticism of the new regulations and cars, in particular, from the leading drivers, notably four-time F1 champion Max Verstappen, the fans have "been very positive" with what they have seen so far.

The Italian added: "Sometimes, we are getting too philosophical or too technical in things that the vast majority of people do not perceive, so I do believe that the focus will stay in the right forum, because it is the nature of Formula 1 to discuss and improve, but it shouldn't be at the centre of the focus for the vast majority of fans.

"If someone wants to protect the business, to react if they see that there are things to be taken in a different direction, so the approach will not change.

"But I think the focus should now really be on what has to be done, and if it will be enough to answer the other questions posed before, maybe yes, maybe no, I don't have that answer.

"There will be a focus within the teams, the drivers, and the FIA, who are the ones who have to coordinate everything and have the responsibility as the regulator to think about what could happen in the next couple of years.

"The focus of the FIA will also be on what happens next, what is the next generation of power units? Because these things have quite a long lead time, and therefore, there is the need to start now to think about what is next, but this should stay in the right forum, in the right place where we discuss these matters."