If rumors are true, Audi will return to F1 in 2026
If you had to point out Mercedes’ ultimate nemesis, it would be Uber. Sorry, taxi jokes about Mercedes are indeed below our level. The ultimate opponents of the German luxury brand are, of course, Audi and BMW. And with a bit of luck, a titanic battle will unfold on the track in a few years. According to racefans.net Audi will soon announce that it will become an engine supplier for F1. The German brand would then step in as early as 2026 when the new engine regulations come into effect.
Audi chiefs Markus Duesmann and Oliver Hoffmann are said to have written in a letter to F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali and FIA president Jean Todt that they are happy with the new engine regulations. In 2026 F1 will stick to the 1.6-litre V6 engines but the MGU-H (Motor Generator Unit-Heat) would disappear. This expensive part recovers energy from the turbo and can also spool up the turbo. Budgets for motorcycles are also limited. These more budget-friendly rules could have been decisive for Audi.
Audi would have already handed out the first sneer
In the letter, Duesmann and Hoffmann are said to have started by congratulating Todt on a ‘fair end’ to this year’s F1 championship. racing fans (who would have seen the letter) interprets this as a sneer towards Mercedes. Surely we don’t need to tell you that the star brand strongly disagreed with how the last race went.
Will Audi as an engine supplier in F1 compete with Mercedes?
If Audi announces its participation in F1 as an engine supplier next year, that certainly does not mean that they will supply engines immediately. In any case, the developments for the engines are currently frozen, which means that the teams are not allowed to further develop their engines. This freeze will be in effect until 2026, when new engine rules come into effect. Then Audi will probably step in, if the rumors are true.
Incidentally, it is not certain that Mercedes will still participate in F1 in 2026. Nothing is known about this at the moment. Of course it would be cool to see two arch-rivals go head to head, if only as an engine supplier. Then of course the big question is: for which teams will Audi be an engine supplier in F1? Helmut Marko previously said to Auto Motor und Sport that they now have everything they need to develop their own engine, but that they do not rule out collaborating with Porsche or Audi if that improves the chances.