Red Bull provide crucial insight into crunch meeting

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has shed light on the meeting held between the F1 power unit manufacturers in Bahrain.

A major meeting on Friday saw the manufacturers come to an agreement to continue with the 2026 regulation changes as planned.

However, all parties attending stated they would be open to the possibility of “normally aspirated” engines returning in the future.

The discussion took place amid speculation the 2026 changes could be delayed or scrapped altogether in favour of a return to V10 engines.

While the motion has been shut down for now, Horner stated the meeting did not signal the end of the idea in its entirety.

"First of all, it was a meeting called by the FIA," Horner told Sky Sports F1.

"It was a very cordial, productive meeting, the FIA president asking for feedback about what the next generation of engine should look like.

"Obviously, 2026 is absolutely fixed. But thinking a little further down the line, what is the right trajectory for Formula 1?

“Certainly not [for] 2027. Impossible, pretty much [for] 2028. It's all subjective, it's a fact-finding mission at the moment, it's now down to the power unit manufacturers to feed back to the FIA. 

“They're gaining all their information, and then it'll progress from there.”

F1 must 'protect itself' with raised changes

F1 switched to the current turbo hybrid units in 2014, while V10s have not been used in 20 years.

While one of the biggest appeals of the V10 engines is the return of the fan-favourite noise, Horner asserted there are other factors which must be considered.

“I think the romanticist in me, a screaming V10 could be really attractive for F1,” he said. “But it's got to be done responsibly. 

“With electrification as well, what does that engine look like? Is it a V10? Is it a V8? That was really the discussion this morning is, what does the future potentially look like? 

“It's now down to different manufacturers to feed back to the FIA and let them digest that.

“I thought it was a healthy discussion - everybody was very open to ideas for the future.”

Another situation that must be thought about is the uncertainty in the global economy amid the worldwide tariffs imposed by US president Donald Trump.

Horner detailed F1 can't ignore the impact a recession could have, given the last global financial crisis in 2008 saw the exit of several manufacturers from the sport.

“You can't ignore volatility like that,” Horner added. “One of the key questions or topics was, whatever the regulations are, cost is essential. 

“Sustainable fuels, we've seen the massive progress that's been made with it.  That's a really exciting introduction next year as well.

“What route is the automotive industry going to take [in the future]? What effect are these tariffs going to have? And in a broader picture, F1 also has to protect itself.”