Former Mercedes chief reacts to alleged F1 engine trick

Former Mercedes engine guru Andy Cowell has offered his reaction to the alleged compression ratio trick the team has developed.

Over the winter, it was reported that Mercedes High Performance Powertrains, of which Cowell was the director when the turbo hybrids were first developed for 2014, had engineered a solution to allow it to run a higher compression ratio for the new 2026 engines.

The rules dictate that a 16:1 compression ratio is the maximum in 2026, but this is only measured when the car is at ambient temperatures in the pit-lane.

Technology to measure the ratio when the car is out on track is not available, with reports suggesting HPP and potentially Red Bull Powertrains (RBPT) have managed to produce a ratio of 18:1, potentially worth 0.3s per lap.

Around Australia's Albert Park, this would be worth 17.4s of race time over the 58 laps, with a crunch engine meeting set to take place on January 22nd between the manufacturers and the FIA.

Audi chief technical officer Mattia Binotto wants talks aimed at developing the technology to measure the ratio on track, whilst Graeme Lowdon of Cadillac, whose team will run Ferrari power units, declared that his new outfit would run "a fully legal engine."

Addressing the topic at the launch of Honda's new power unit as it teams up with Aston Martin, chief strategy officer Cowell offered his thoughts on the row.

"The topic of compression ratio, there's always a topic that bubbles up when new regulations come into place," explained Cowell.

"And every competitor reads the regulations and pushes performance to the limit. Compression ratio is clearly a key thermal efficiency enabling aspect of an internal combustion engine, so you always push it to the limit.

"I'm sure every single power unit manufacturer is doing that. The FIA have the job to make sure that everybody interprets the regulations in a fair and equal way."