F1 will change the powertrain regulation in 2026. With the system now using up to 50% more electricity and 100% more sustainable fuel, and the expensive MGU-H removed, Formula 1 is entering a new was.
After Honda retires from F1, Red Bull will set up its own F1 powertrain division, Red Bull Powertrains, at the Milton Keynes headquarters and will use its own F1 powertrain from 2026. The first prototype V6 engine has started on August 4th.
Toto Wolff believes Red Bull will benefit from the knowledge it gained from working with Honda, which continues to repair its powerplant.
“They will be in good shape by 2026. I have no doubt about that,” Toto Volg told the New York Times.
“They have a huge advantage in being able to compete with whatever business they are doing compared to one of Honda’s current leading powertrains.”
“They have it in the car, they know the performance it brings, the characteristics of the engine. That’s why learning where the goal will be will be pretty obvious.”
“This is a big plus and we can buy more kits.”
“They have hired good people, they have investments behind them, they have a lot of ambition and it shows from the side of the chassis, so they are competitors that we have to take seriously.”
Mercedes lost a lot of key personnel last year to Red Bull Powertrains after the team hired heavily to stay competitive for the past four years.
Despite the shortage of manpower, Toto Wolff commented: “We can’t stop the travelers. If the wanderers have to leave, let them go.”
“I have no problem with people leaving. We have lost some good people and some less good people.”
“It is our responsibility to build from within and develop the next level of leader, and that’s okay.”
Red Bull has announced that it will strengthen its partnership with Honda and it has been announced that the HONDA logo will be installed on the Red Bull / Alpha Tauri F1 car.
At the summit held in Japan where the Japanese F1 GP will be held, partnerships after 2026 are also said to have been discussed, with internal combustion engines Red Bull Powertrains and Honda officially returning to F1 and driving the hybrid side. . reported that the collaboration will be resumed in some way.
