"Next year will be a balancing act," reckons Horner ahead of 2026 F1 technical overhaul
Ahead of the sweeping technical regulation change in 2026, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner suggests that teams will face a difficult choice next year when they will need to find the right balance between the 2025 and 2026 F1 seasons.
Ahead of this year's Canadian Grand Prix, the FIA and Formula One released the technical regulations that will define the sport from 2026 onwards.
The 2026 cars will be smaller and lighter than the current generation, the wheelbase reduced from a maximum of 3600mm to 3400mm while the width of the car is down from 2000mm to 1900mm.
The weight has also been slashed by 30kg with downforce down by 30 per cent and drag by 55 per cent.
Power units will also go through a significant overhaul as the much-debated MGU-H will be ditched and the ratio between the internal combustion engine and the electrical energy will be even. The maximum deployment of electrical energy via the MGU-K (motor generator unit - kinetic) will go from 120 kilowatts (160 hp) under the current regs to a whopping 350 kw (475 hp) -- the same power output as the motor in a Formula E car.
The complete overhaul of the power unit has prompted the sport to introduce active aerodynamics to suit the energy management requirements of new power units. The new cars will run on 100% sustainable fuel.
Asked how big a nightmare it is going to be juggling development for 2025, not to sacrifice that championship, but then not compromising the plans for 2026, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner claims that things will get particularly difficult next year if a team finds itself in a championship fight.
"Yeah, it's a tough one because we have the biggest regulation change in probably 50 or 60 years in the history of the sport. So with that in mind, we hate finishing third in the championship, but the additional wind tunnel time that comes with that is, if you like, the only upside in a year where there is such a dramatic regulatory change.
"It's a constant balancing act. And if you are in a tight battle, inevitably your development gets dragged into the season longer, which is particularly hard. I mean, we saw that in ‘21 into ‘22, where you have a big conceptual change of regs.
"Obviously, the earlier start, the bigger advantage you have. But if there is a tight championship and it does go down to the wire, then that's going to be a tough balancing act for the different teams to choose how they apportion their resource.
In the face of McLaren's first championship title in 26 years, the Woking-based outfit's team boss Andrea Stella echoed Horner's sentiments, highlighting that that the tight pecking order forces teams to strive for the last drop of performance.
"This season I think has shown a level of competitiveness that possibly is unprecedented in terms of four teams being in condition to win races and potentially being in condition to fight for championships.
"So the standards at the moment are very, very high in Formula 1. And to stay competitive, you do have to make a lot of investment in terms of development, in terms of performance, which then sets the challenge that you say where you actually make these investments.
"I think teams nowadays have capacity to carry two projects together. So, personally, I don't think we are leaving much performance behind because of having to make a choice as to how we are focusing the development.
"At some stage, potentially next year, early next year, I would expect, you might have to make a call and this may depend on what realistically are your opportunities to win races and fight for the championship," Stella noted.
