Author: quyen1

Just imagine a Ferrari F1 car designed by Adrian Newey and driven by Lewis Hamilton…

Despite talk of Adrian Newey linking up with Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari, Dutch journalist Jack Plooij says Hamilton’s 2025 arrival would actually stop the acclaimed designer from moving to Maranello.

Instead, he believes if Newey decides to continue in Formula 1, it would “only” be with a team that has Max Verstappen who has been linked to Mercedes.

‘I don’t think he will work anywhere to help Lewis Hamilton win a title’

In a year of major announcements, Newey joined Hamilton in breaking the internet when he announced that he’d be leaving Red Bull within the first quarter of 2025.

Like Hamilton, he too signed a new two-year contract last year for 2024 and ’25, but also like Hamilton, he’ll walk away earlier than expected.

While Hamilton’s shock announcement was that he’s off to Ferrari, Newey’s – at least for now – is that he is leaving Red Bull with speculation Ferrari could be his next destination.

The Scuderia have made several plays for the design guru over the decades, but now it’s being said they may finally seal the deal.

Plooij doesn’t see that happening.

“If Newey ever works somewhere again, it will be together with Verstappen,” predicted the Ziggo Sport journalist.

“I don’t think he will work anywhere to help Lewis Hamilton win a title. I think he gets so much joy out of Max.

“Are we still thinking about 2021? Who was crying [happy tears] at the pit wall? Newey!

“Horner was just like, yeah baby, yeah baby! Newey was crying. He was so intensely happy with that.

“So I really trust that he will only go somewhere if Max is there.”

Verstappen, despite having a contract with Red Bull that runs though to 2028, continues to be linked to a move to Mercedes in 2026.

What Lewis Hamilton and Adrian Newey said about potential 2025 collaboration

Hamilton personally would love to work with Newey, whose cars have won 25 championship titles with another two on the horizon with Red Bull.

Asked in Miami if he’d like Newey to join him at Ferrari, Hamilton replied: “Very much.

“Adrian’s got such a great history, track record and has just done an amazing job through his career in engaging with teams and the knowledge that he has and I think he would be an amazing addition.

“I think they’ve already got a great team. They’re already making huge progress, strides forwards. Their car is quicker this year. But yeah, it would be a privilege to work with him.

“If I was to do a list of people that I’d love to work with, he would absolutely be at the top of it.”

As for Newey, he was “flattered” to hear this from Hamilton but today is standing firm on his desire to take a break from Formula 1.

“Honestly, it’s very kind of Lewis to say that, I’m very flattered,” he told Sky Sports.

“But at the moment, it’s just take a little bit of a break and see what happens next.

“I think Mandy, my wife, and the dogs, we’ll probably go travelling, we’ll probably get a motorhome or something, go down through France and just enjoy life.

“And then maybe at some point, I don’t know when, I’ll be standing in the shower and say, ‘Right, this is going to be the next adventure’.

“But right now, there is no plan.”

Lewis Hamilton.

Lewis Hamilton had supermodel Kendall Jenner “terrified” as he gave her a high-speed tour of the Miami Grand Prix circuit…not just once.

After the Asian section that kicked off the F1 2024 calendar, Formula 1 headed over to the United States for the first of three stops in the nation this season, the Miami Grand Prix. However, Hamilton was not lapping the Miami International Autodrome in his Mercedes W15 only.

‘Holy f***!’ – Lewis Hamilton petrifies Kendall Jenner

Instead, Hamilton was also busy at the wheel of a Mercedes GT AMG, with Jenner his special guest in the passenger seat for a high-speed thrill ride. But, while Jenner it seemed would have been very happy for Hamilton to stop at one lap, he decided to throw in another for good measure.

“You ready?” Hamilton asked Jenner with a fist bump before he got the Mercedes GT AMG moving. “Yeah I guess. I’m terrified,” she responded.

“Holy f***! Lewis!” Jenner exclaimed as Hamilton put his foot down, “I can’t believe this is what you do all the time.”

But, just as Jenner thought it was all over, it was not. “We’ll go again,” said Hamilton, and while Jenner said “no, I can’t”, Hamilton was not about to listen as a beaming smile broke out and he floored it for another lap.

“Oh my god Lewis! I literally hate you!” Jenner screamed as the seven-time World Champion burned in some donuts on the Miami track for good measure.

“Okay I get! You’re really good,” was her next attempt to get Hamilton to call it quits as he set off again at speed, but, it didn’t work.

Hamilton made sure to get another “let’s go again” in, as a joke this time, with Jenner having said she felt “so much better now that it’s over”. This time, it was.

Can Lewis Hamilton return to winning ways in Formula 1? 👇

Hamilton was not the only Mercedes driver taking a celebrity for a spin in Miami, with George Russell doing the same. Music icon Ed Sheeran was in the passenger seat.

While Sheeran was a lot quieter around his rapid tour of the Miami International Autodrome, that and the spirts of nervous laughter suggested he was not enjoying the ride too much either.

“Oh my god, f***!” was about as much talking as Russell got out of him during the lap, Sheeran showing the Mercedes driver his shaking arms.

“I can’t believe you do that day in day out,” Sheeran added at the end.

As for the Miami Grand Prix action, it was another tricky outing for Mercedes, Hamilton’s P6 and Russell’s P8 meaning their wait for a first podium in F1 2024 goes on.

Lewis Hamilton vs Charles Leclerc: a battle for the ages?

Lewis Hamilton has been warned that future team-mate Charles Leclerc has the power to create a “really, really difficult” atmosphere at Ferrari in the F1 2025 season.

Hamilton announced in February that he will join Ferrari on a multi-year contract from next year, bringing an end to his long and successful association with Mercedes.

How will Lewis Hamilton fare against Charles Leclerc at Ferrari?

His switch will see Hamilton, the most decorated driver in history with seven World Championships and more than 100 race victories to his name, take on Leclerc, widely regarded as the fastest man on the current grid.

Hamilton has had up-and-down relationships with his team-mates over the course of his illustrious career, memorably clashing with Fernando Alonso at McLaren in 2007 before duelling for the title with Nico Rosberg over three seasons between 2014 and 2016.

Jenson Button famously outscored Hamilton during their three seasons as McLaren team-mates between 2010 and 2012, which ended with the latter fleeing to Mercedes for 2013.

Lewis Hamilton and Ferrari: A marriage made in heaven?

Appearing on the Sky F1 podcast, Button argued that Hamilton would not have been equipped to strike a productive partnership with a driver of Leclerc’s calibre just a few years ago.

And he claimed Leclerc’s experience at Ferrari, having joined the team from Sauber in 2019, could prove a powerful weapon in the inter-team rivalry next season.

He said: “I think if it was the Lewis of seven or eight years ago, it would be a tricky relationship.

“But now he just seems so relaxed in himself and I don’t think they’re going to have issues being team-mates at all, no more than Carlos [Sainz] and Charles have right now.

“Do I think they’ll work well together? Yes.

“I think the positives that Charles has is that he knows the team, speaks Italian.

“If he wanted to, he could make it really, really difficult for Lewis in that team, the atmosphere.

“And you can say: ‘That’s not sportsmanlike’ – but that’s part of racing

“Nico Rosberg will tell you that as well: it’s about getting the team of people behind you, so that gives you strength and it takes away strength from your team-mate.

“But Lewis has been around long enough to understand the situation and I’m really, really looking forward to that fight between team-mates.”

Button claimed that Hamilton, still in pursuit of a record-breaking eighth title, cannot afford to be “out for himself” and must adapt to “a different way of racing” at Ferrari, with the team’s ambitions taking precedence over those of the drivers at Maranello.

He explained: “Obviously, they’re working together. They’re Ferrari, it’s all about Ferrari.

“That’s the one thing with Ferrari. In every other team, you can say the driver’s out for himself. And the team, obviously.

“But in Ferrari, everyone works for Ferrari. It’s all about Ferrari winning the World Championships.

“It’s definitely a different way of racing for someone like Lewis, who is such a star in this sport and suddenly he’s working for Ferrari to win the Championship.

“I look forward to seeing the dynamic there and that’s going to be very exciting next year.”

Adrian Newey will leave Red Bull in the first quarter of 2025

With his Red Bull Formula 1 involvement over, Adrian Newey has one final project with the Milton Keynes-based outfit, the RB17, which has been confirmed for a grand debut.

In the lead up to the Miami Grand Prix, the shock announcement dropped that Newey was finished with Red Bull’s Formula 1 endeavours and would leave entirely after the first quarter of 2025. Before that though, he still has exciting business to attend to in the form of Red Bull’s RB17 hypercar.

Adrian Newey-designed Red Bull RB17 to debut at Goodwood

Announced back in 2022, the RB17 will be a track-specific hypercar which utilises Newey’s world-renowned knowledge of ground effect aerodynamics, designed in conjunction with Red Bull Advanced Technologies.

Production will begin in 2025, but we will not need to wait until then to see the RB17, as it has been confirmed that it will debut at the 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed as the finished product.

The unveiling will take place on July 12, after which it will be on static display in Cathedral Paddock for the remainder of the weekend.

More on the Red Bull RB17

Red Bull’s presence at Goodwood will stretch far beyond the RB17 reveal, with the team set to celebrate their Formula 1 20th anniversary via a range of cars and drivers to feature in their highly-successful tenure so far, with seven Drivers’ and six Constructors’ titles won.

Team principal Christian Horner and 13-time racer winner David Coulthard, who scored Red Bull’s first F1 podium, will be among those to attend.

“We are excited to debut the RB17 to the public for the first time and couldn’t think of a better world stage than Goodwood Festival of Speed,” said Horner.

“The RB17 exudes rarity and engineering excellence. We’ve channelled everything we know about racing into making the ultimate performance car and can’t wait for the public to see the result.

“I’m also just as thrilled to be bringing such a remarkable selection of cars and drivers to the iconic festival and look forward to celebrating our 20th season in front of such passionate motorsport fans.”

Red Bull look set to add two further title triumphs to their collection in F1 2024, Max Verstappen at the head of the Drivers’ Championship as he chases a fourth successive crown, while Red Bull top the Constructors’.

However, McLaren are threatening to complicate what looked like a fresh stroll for Red Bull, after Lando Norris drove the heavily-upgraded MCL38 to victory in Miami.

Adrian Newey is rumoured to have received offers from Aston Martin and Ferrari as he considers his Red Bull future

Adrian Newey does “not know” if he’ll be involved in F1 when the new car specs are introduced 2026, but he’s warned teams it would be “premature” to lambast them today.

Formula 1 is set to overhaul the regulations in 2026, not only for the cars but also the engine specifications.

Will Adrian Newey be involved in F1’s ‘slightly strange’ 2026 rules?

The biggest change is the sport’s move to a 50/50 split between the internal combustion engine and electrical output, meaning an increased focus on energy recovery.

The MGU-K [Kinetic Motor Generator Unit] will almost triple the amount of electrical power produced by the current hybrid components.

As for the rest, Formula 1 has yet to lock down the car regulations with the likes of Christian Horner fearing “Frankenstein” cars to comply with the battery requirements.

Newey, though, isn’t as negative as the Red Bull team boss, after all, designers are told the rules and it’s up to them to come up with the best solution.

But whether he’ll be a part of that solution, if it is with Ferrari as has been widely speculated or Aston Martin as Helmut Marko predicted, he isn’t saying.

What’s next for Red Bull and Adrian Newey…

“I must admit that when the ’22 regulations were announced back in 2020 my first reaction to them was that they were quite restrictive,” he told Sky Sports.

“And that’s always a shame because the more regulation restrictions we have, the more that stifles creativity and other solutions.

“But as it turned out, there’s actually quite a lot of flexibility and I think we saw that it started at ’22 that there are lots of different shapes out there, they’re starting to converge now but initially they were.

“Going through the ’26 regulations, at the moment they look kind of a slightly strange set of regulations.

“But to then write them off and say therefore they won’t be good, I think is way too premature.

“You know, there comes a point always where as a designer you first look at what they might be and you might have an opinion of are they good or are they bad.

“I’m sure ’26 will be another big challenge.

“Whether I’m part of that or not. I really don’t know. But for those involved, it will be a big challenge.”

But not being a part of that, or best to say definitely not being a part when it comes to Red Bull, will be a major blow for the Milton Keynes squad.

That’s according to Red Bull motorsport advisor Helmut Marko.

“This is of course a big loss for Red Bull Racing,” Marko told Kronen Zeitung.

“He wasn’t always in the day-to-day business, didn’t take care of every detail or every screw, but he was the one who had the complex knowledge of aerodynamics and mechanical grip of the entire car under control.”

“Of course in 2026 there will be new regulations,” he added. “Whenever such regulations came in the past, it was usually Adrian who was the first to understand it optimally.”

Christian Horner and Adrian Newey established a productive partnership at Red Bull

From Williams to McLaren and today to Red Bull, teams may state there is “no problem” when it comes to Adrian Newey leaving, but Christian Danner says it is anything but.

Red Bull announced in the build-up to the Miami Grand Prix that this season would be Newey’s last full year with Red Bull as he will leave the team in early 2025.

‘This is the beginning of the end of Red Bull Racing’s dominance’

The acclaimed design guru, who has 25 championship titles to his name with an additional two set to follow this season, has stepped away from Red Bull’s Formula 1 operations and will instead focus on the RB17 hypercar as he works in his gardening leave.

But while team boss Christian Horner has downplayed Newey’s exit, adamant he leaves behind a well-oiled technical department, Helmut Marko says it is a “huge” loss for Red Bull.

Former F1 driver Danner agrees with the Austrian.

He even went as far as to predict that this is the “beginning of the end” for the double World Champions.

“This is the beginning of the end of Red Bull Racing’s dominance,” he told Avd Motorsport magazine.

“I’m not saying they will crash, but the dominance is over with the departure of Adrian Newey. In every team Adrian worked for, when he left they always said: No problem!

“He is still the man with the overview and the man who has the matter under control.”

Red Bull have won the last three Drivers’ Championship titles and the last two Constructors’, including a 1-2 in the 2023 Drivers’ standings.

What’s next for Adrian Newey and Red Bull?

While Williams won 59 Grand Prix with a Newey-designed car, they’ve won just 11 since. As for McLaren, while they initially had success after Newey left in 2006, they’ve won just two races in the last decade.

Danner downplayed Horner’s claims that Red Bull’s personnel were up to the task of winning titles having learned from the maestro himself.

“If it were that easy, all the Adrian Newey students who would have built a winning car,” said Danner. “This is a far more serious departure than anyone would like to admit.

“Whenever things didn’t go well at Red Bull, what happened? Adrian had to come to the track.”

He also warned Red Bull that talk of retirement or being burned out would only continue for so long and then Newey, with his championship-winning record, would move onto pastures new.

“That sounds good, now a sabbatical…But then Adrian is bored to death,” he added.

Just imagine a Ferrari F1 car designed by Adrian Newey and driven by Lewis Hamilton…

Despite talk of Adrian Newey linking up with Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari, Dutch journalist Jack Plooij says Hamilton’s 2025 arrival would actually stop the acclaimed designer from moving to Maranello.

Instead, he believes if Newey decides to continue in Formula 1, it would “only” be with a team that has Max Verstappen who has been linked to Mercedes.

‘I don’t think he will work anywhere to help Lewis Hamilton win a title’

In a year of major announcements, Newey joined Hamilton in breaking the internet when he announced that he’d be leaving Red Bull within the first quarter of 2025.

Like Hamilton, he too signed a new two-year contract last year for 2024 and ’25, but also like Hamilton, he’ll walk away earlier than expected.

While Hamilton’s shock announcement was that he’s off to Ferrari, Newey’s – at least for now – is that he is leaving Red Bull with speculation Ferrari could be his next destination.

The Scuderia have made several plays for the design guru over the decades, but now it’s being said they may finally seal the deal.

Plooij doesn’t see that happening.

“If Newey ever works somewhere again, it will be together with Verstappen,” predicted the Ziggo Sport journalist.

“I don’t think he will work anywhere to help Lewis Hamilton win a title. I think he gets so much joy out of Max.

“Are we still thinking about 2021? Who was crying [happy tears] at the pit wall? Newey!

“Horner was just like, yeah baby, yeah baby! Newey was crying. He was so intensely happy with that.

“So I really trust that he will only go somewhere if Max is there.”

Verstappen, despite having a contract with Red Bull that runs though to 2028, continues to be linked to a move to Mercedes in 2026.

More on Adrian Newey’s Red Bull departure

What Lewis Hamilton and Adrian Newey said about potential 2025 collaboration

Hamilton personally would love to work with Newey, whose cars have won 25 championship titles with another two on the horizon with Red Bull.

Asked in Miami if he’d like Newey to join him at Ferrari, Hamilton replied: “Very much.

“Adrian’s got such a great history, track record and has just done an amazing job through his career in engaging with teams and the knowledge that he has and I think he would be an amazing addition.

“I think they’ve already got a great team. They’re already making huge progress, strides forwards. Their car is quicker this year. But yeah, it would be a privilege to work with him.

“If I was to do a list of people that I’d love to work with, he would absolutely be at the top of it.”

As for Newey, he was “flattered” to hear this from Hamilton but today is standing firm on his desire to take a break from Formula 1.

“Honestly, it’s very kind of Lewis to say that, I’m very flattered,” he told Sky Sports.

“But at the moment, it’s just take a little bit of a break and see what happens next.

“I think Mandy, my wife, and the dogs, we’ll probably go travelling, we’ll probably get a motorhome or something, go down through France and just enjoy life.

“And then maybe at some point, I don’t know when, I’ll be standing in the shower and say, ‘Right, this is going to be the next adventure’.

McLaren chief executive Zak Brown has taken aim at Red Bull.

McLaren Racing CEO Zak Brown has reiterated his belief that Adrian Newey’s exit will trigger “more dominos to fall” at Red Bull, claiming “people want to work for brands they’re proud of”.

The Red Bull RB17 hypercar will be Newey’s final contribution to the Milton Keynes-based squad, with his shock departure confirmed for after the first quarter of 2025, while his involvement with the Formula 1 team is over.

Zak Brown sees ‘a lot of issues going on’ at Red Bull

While the team has attempted to play down the significance of Newey’s exit, losing the services of a Formula 1 car designer with 25 titles to his name, plus the threat that he could pop up at a rival in the future, is far from a positive development for Red bull, with Brown suspecting that more departures are on the horizon.

“I think there are a lot of issues going on there,” Brown said of Red Bull when speaking to Sky F1.

“I think the least of the issues is probably on track, right? I mean, Max [Verstappen] is unbelievable. It’s an unbelievable team.

“But I think with what’s happened at the start of the year and the constant noise and now Adrian Newey is leaving, I think there’s going to be more dominoes to fall.

“A lot of these sports teams are all about culture and I think they’ve got some issues to work through that can cause some lingering challenges for them. I think we’re starting to see that now.”

More on shock Adrian Newey Red Bull announcement

In support of his belief, Brown said there is an “unusual higher level” of CVs landing on his desk, adding that he is “sure” that other Red Bull staff members are questioning their future with the team after this Newey development, claiming “people want to work for brands they’re proud of”.

“We’ve got an awesome team,” said Brown. “There’s always CVs flying around, but we have noticed an unusual higher level.

“And I think when you have someone like Adrian Newey leave, not only do you miss his pen so to speak on the design of the car, people want to work for brands they’re proud of and bosses they want to work alongside and Adrian Newey, so I think with everything that’s going on there, and Adrian Newey leaving, I think for sure that there will be people inside there going, ‘Is it time for me to move on?’”

And if Red Bull personnel are thinking that, then McLaren has established itself as one of the most exciting destinations on the grid, with their driver Lando Norris having made himself an F1 race winner for the first time at the Miami Grand Prix.

Brown says McLaren has proven that Red Bull is “beatable”, with the target now set to pick up further victories before the F1 2024 campaign is over.

Asked if he expects McLaren to fight for more wins this year, Brown replied: “Yeah, I don’t see why we can’t be fighting for wins.

“It’s not going to be easy. Red Bull, I think still has the pace, this one race, and we were really dialed in.

“But the last few races, we’ve been quicker than Ferrari. So we’re close. We’re in the game. I think it shows they’re beatable and we intend to beat them and anyone else for that matter, hopefully, a couple more times this year. I see no reason why not.”

Next up is the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, where Oscar Piastri is set to also receive the fully upgraded McLaren MCL38 which Norris drove to victory in Miami.

The departure of Adrian Newey from Red Bull has been addressed by Ford.

With Red Bull losing Adrian Newey by the middle of next year, future engine partner Ford has shared its thoughts on his departure.

Ford enter Formula 1 in partnership with Red Bull’s new engine division, Red Bull Powertrains, in 2026 – meaning the US giant won’t be powering a new Adrian Newey creation.

Ford fully committed to Red Bull future

Ford put pen to paper with Red Bull in absolutely dominant form in F1, with the Milton Keynes-based squad sweeping all before it and with a harmonious management structure.

But 2024 has shaken this harmony, with an internal investigation by Red Bull GmbH into allegations involving team boss Christian Horner disrupting proceedings. While the investigation was dismissed, the fallout has resulted in tensions within the ranks as Horner retained the support of both the Thai and Austrian shareholders.

The off-track dramas played a part in the acceleration of Adrian Newey’s plans for the future, with the chief technical officer choosing to hand in his notice at Red Bull.

A key part of the team who has overseen all the dominant Red Bull designs over the years, Newey’s departure will mark a big loss for the squad – particularly ahead of the major regulation change for 2026.

Newey’s involvement in F1 has, for now, come to an end with his duties shifting over to the roll-out of the new Red Bull RB17 hypercar, due to hit production next year.

With Ford entering Formula 1 in 2026, news of Newey’s departure could have been a big concern for Ford ahead of their link-up with RBPT in their new long-term technical partnership, but Ford’s Performance Motorsports director Mark Rushbrook said his exit makes no change.

“We have huge respect for Adrian in terms of his career and all the things that he has done for many different teams in F1, especially the last 19 years at Red Bull,” Rushbrook said.

“We wish him the best for whatever he will do in the future. Our focus though fully remains on the power unit programme for 2026. That’s unchanged after this news and that is still going ahead, full throttle.

“Like any good company or any good racing team, you always have a succession plan, and you are always training and developing people within the organisation. That is no different in this case. I am not being disrespectful to Adrian at all because he is fantastic, but every team has a succession plan.”

More on Ford’s upcoming F1 entry

Why Adrian Newey has decided to leave F1

While there’s plenty of speculation about Newey potentially joining another team on the grid, the British designer has yet to announce any plans beyond leaving Red Bull, and F1.

Speaking in his only on-record interview since the departure confirmation, Newey told Sky F1 that he’d been pondering an exit for some time – pointing back at the 2021 season as being particularly difficult.

In a year in which he suffered serious head injuries in a cycling accident, 2021 also marked the final year of the old regulations, as well as the development window for the revolutionary 2022 regulations – resulting in Newey having to concentrate on the ongoing development of the RB16B right until the end of the championship, while also honing the new ground-effect RB18 machine.

“Formula 1 is all-consuming,” he said.

“I’ve been at it for a long time now. 2021 was a really busy year because of the tight battle with Mercedes through the championship and, at the same time, putting all the research and development into the RB18, which is the father of this generation of cars.

“I don’t know. There comes a point, I think, where I just felt, as Forrest Gump said, ‘I’m feeling a little bit tired’.”

Some speculation had suggested Newey’s departure was hastened by a falling out with Horner, although both parties expressed their admiration for each other and the extent of their relationship in public statements since.

“We have enjoyed a great relationship, and we continue to enjoy a great relationship,” Horner said.

“We are friends as well as work colleagues and he’s done a huge amount for this team.

“We’ll be sad to see him leave, but he’s left the team in good shape and we’ve got a great team of people and strength and depth to take us forward.

“It’s been a wonderful journey with Adrian. He’s a friend, he’s the godfather to my children and we remain friends.”

Speaking about the upcoming 2026 regulations, Newey said he can’t rule out the possibility of perhaps engaging with them in a competitive capacity.

“Going through the ’26 regulations, at the moment they look kind of a slightly strange set of regulations,” he said.

“But to then write them off and say therefore they won’t be good, I think is way too premature.

“You know, there comes a point always where as a designer you first look at what they might be and you might have an opinion of are they good or are they bad.

“I’m sure ’26 will be another big challenge.

“Whether I’m part of that or not. I really don’t know. But for those involved, it will be a big challenge.”

Six factory teams are due to be on the F1 2026 grid.

The F1 2026 season is going to feature a huge technical overhaul, with the cars set to look and sound different due to enormous regulation changes.

Brand new power units that are coming to the sport, with a greater focus on battery power and a switch to fully sustainable fuels on the horizon. New entrants have already confirmed their plans to come in, meaning Formula 1 is in a position whereby the grid will feature more factory teams than customer constructors come 2026. Here is a look at the suppliers and who is currently due to power which team…

Who are the power unit suppliers from the F1 2026 season?

Red Bull Ford Powertrains

Having carried on using Honda’s intellectual property from 2022 to 2025 under the joint Red Bull Powertrains moniker, F1 2026 will see Red Bull create their very first engine from scratch.

Automotive giants Ford confirmed in April 2023 that they have joined the project as technical partners, with Red Bull Powertrains having already begun work on site at Milton Keynes.

Ford’s return to Formula 1 comes more than two decades after their last entry, with the 2026 engine formula aligning with their goals.

Jim Farley, Ford president and CEO said when the partnership was announced: “Ford’s return to Formula 1 with Red Bull Racing is all about where we are going as a company– increasingly electric, software-defined, modern vehicles and experiences.”

Mercedes

Mercedes have their High Performance Powertrains [HPP] department based at Brixworth in the United Kingdom, and have been producing Formula 1 power units there since 1994 after its takeover of Ilmor.

Having had its own team to power since Mercedes returned to the grid in 2010, the Mercedes power units of the turbo hybrid era proved both fast and reliable, which led to 40 per cent of the grid being Mercedes powered in the early 2020s prior to this change.

Ferrari

As Formula 1’s longest serving and most storied team, to drive for Ferrari also means having one of their own engines in the back of the car.

The success of Ferrari power has been mixed throughout the history of the sport, but the team has often had its fair share of customer outfits over time.

Renault

Having rebranded the team’s name to Alpine in 2021 to reflect the brand’s sporting division, Renault have only had themselves as a reference point for their power unit operation for some time, with customer teams having ebbed away over the years.

Barring a fresh customer deal for F1 2026, Renault will be powering themselves through Alpine for the years to come.

Honda

After opting to step away from Formula 1 at the end of 2021, Honda confirmed they would be returning in 2026 when the sport’s new power unit regulations would take effect.

Having stuttered in the mid-2010s with McLaren in the beginning of their previous stint, they eventually rose to enormous success with Red Bull.

Aston Martin have agreed an exclusive factory power unit deal with the Japanese marque from the F1 2026 season.

Audi

Audi will be arriving on the Formula 1 grid for the very first time in the 2026 season after agreeing a majority takeover of the stalwart Sauber team in October 2022, before upgrading that to what will become a full takeover come 2026.

Audi’s arrival will also mean a Volkswagen-owned brand will appear on the grid when the 2026 season comes around, with Nico Hulkenberg  having already been signed up to represent the team in their first season.

More on big changes coming in the F1 2026 season:

Are any other manufacturers aiming to get onto the F1 2026 grid?

General Motors (Cadillac)

The bid of Andretti Global to reach Formula 1 received FIA approval in 2023, but talks progressed to FOM, whereby their own assessments would take place as to whether an 11^th team could join the grid.

As a part of the Andretti bid, General Motors confirmed they would be partnering up with them to launch a fully all-American team, creating a power unit through its Cadillac brand.

However, FOM rejected Andretti-Cadillac’s initial plans to join the grid, but Andretti maintain their work ‘continues at pace’ to try and join the grid – having opened up a Silverstone base in April 2024 to expand their staffing numbers ahead of a proposed entry.