Vasseur and Cowell offer their view on the 2026 F1 power units
With Formula One set to introduce all-new power units next season, Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur claimed that there will be many factors that will affect the performance of the future power units.
The following season will see Formula One introduce a new power unit. The new construction is expected to continue to produce over 1,000 bhp (750 kW), although the power will come from different sources.
The new power unit will include a turbocharged 1.6-litre V6 internal combustion engine configuration which will be very similar to what has been used since 2014. However, the power output of the internal combustion part of the power unit will decrease to 540 bhp from 850 bhp.
While the Motor Generator Unit – Heat will be banned, the Motor Generator Unit – Kinetic output will increase to 470 bhp (350 kW) from 160 bhp (120 kW).
In addition, fuel flow rates will be measured and limited based on energy, rather than mass of the fuel itself. The power units will use a fully sustainable fuel being developed by Formula One.[82][83] The power units are expected to recover twice as much electrical energy as before.
Although the new power unit regulation are set to arrive in less than a year, the sport is currently discussing concerns that the drivers would run out of battery on power-sensitive circuits with long straights, forcing the drivers to "lift and coast" before the braking zone.
Commenting on the current state of development, Ferrari team boss Fred Vasseur said that there will be a list of factors that will affect the performance of the future power units.
"Honestly, I think it’s impossible to have a precise idea about the performance level of next year’s cars and on the engine. We are not in a situation where we’re just speaking about the ICE.
"Drivability will be key. Temperature will be key. The ICE will be key. The battery will be key. And I’m not sure that anyone knows what the others are doing. You can be king of the place in 2025 – but the most important is 2026.
Aston Martin's CEO and team boss Andy Cowell echoed Vasseur's words, but he also suggested that engine manufacturers still have time to develop their products ahead of the next season.
"As Fred said, it’s very hard to just say it’s about crank power, or battery, or heat rejection. All of these parameters are traded off. There are compromises in order to come up with the fastest race car. And we’re still many months away from the introduction point.
"I imagine that every single engineering team is looking at what they’ve got and going, “Ah, there are all these performance ideas. How do we get those in?” Then there will be a load of reliability issues – how do we solve those? The supply chain will be screaming because you’re asking for both performance and reliability.
"You just push really, really hard – and every single minute of every day counts. There are a lot of minutes before the first race. So someone who’s in front at the moment might drop back. Someone who’s behind at the moment might go forward. But how do you measure it?
"At the end of the day, it will be Melbourne 2026, in qualifying – that’ll be the first time we really see all the different car types with the power units, with the new aero, new tyres, and so on and that’s where the stopwatch will tell us where everybody is at with their cars."
