F1 team bosses discuss delay in signing 2026 power unit regulation

F1 team bosses speak on the deadline delay to signing of 2026 power unit regulation, Porsche rumour, Aston Martin standalone idea.

The 2026 season will see new regulation for power unit and a new supplier entering F1 in the form of Audi. Originally, the closing date for PU supplies was three months ago in October but it was pushed to November even though the chiefs noted that there isn’t any formal or official deadline of sorts and that FIA is flexible with it.

At that initial stage only one team had entered and subsequently transpired, further manufacturers confirmed their entry. The delay was down to last minute discussions on legal side, governance and tidying up of the technical regulations mostly.

Power Unit supplies, confirmation, reasons for delays –

Laurent Rossi (Alpine/Renault): “Well, yeah, we had some points we wanted to discuss on the legal side, to make sure that we fully covered as much as possible, which we did. We just kept on discussing those points as far as we could. And at some point, when we reach a level in discussions where we think we’re all in a good position, we signed.”

Christian Horner (Red Bull): “The deadlines were extended but there’s an awful lot of discussion about governance and tidying up some of the technical regs and obviously financial regs as well. So, as a newcomer for 2026, Red Bull Powertrains has entered. And yeah, it’s an exciting moment for the group, for the company, a new challenge to take on, and a lot to do between now and 2026.”

Possible PU Supplier but no more –

Mike Krack (Aston Martin): “Yeah, so it’s a bit of a different question for us, but yeah, we have evaluated really, all the resources needed, our situation for the years to come, and we decided that we are very, very happy with our current supply of power units with our partner, and then decided not to follow up.”

Formal deadlines, delays, Porsche and McLaren rumours –

Toto Wolff (Mercedes): “So there was no formal deadline.  I think there is nothing in the regulations that said it needs to be the 15th of October, it was discretionary for the FIA to decide when that is. And we have entered, that has happened. And now it’s about the FIA to talk to everyone else and these discussions are progressing as far as I understand, so we are on course for 2026.”

Zak Brown (McLaren): “We’re very happy with Mercedes. I’m a believer that you can win a World Championship with a customer engine. I think the engine in our car is no different than the engine in Lewis’s car. There’s obviously benefits to being a works team with some kind of the advanced knowledge that you get. And I think the engines are absolutely the same. We have a long term contract with Mercedes, very happy with the collaboration, and aren’t really spending too much time yet thinking about 2026 and beyond.”

Here’s how the F1 2022 teams were categorised in ranking: https://formularapida.net/f1-2022-teams-categorised-in-tier-system-for-their-performances/

Here’s how the F1 2022 drivers were categorised in ranking: https://formularapida.net/f1-2022-drivers-categorised-in-tier-system-for-their-performances/

Here’s drivers’ list of Top 10 drivers

Here’s the team bosses list of Top 10 drivers

Here’s Mohammed Ben Sulayem surprised by adverse reaction to F1 teams

Here’s news of Andretti/Cadillac

Here’s Mohammed Ben Sulayem on FIA team looking into interest

Here’s Frederic Vasseur on the need of independent teams

Here’s FIA expanding on Sporting Code changes

Here’s F1 2023 entry list