Toto Wolff backtracks over opposition to major F1 rule change

Today at 01:25

Toto Wolff has committed to being "open-minded if necessary" about a change to F1's engine rules for the 2026 season. At meetings of the F1 Commission in recent weeks, the topic of the 2026 power unit regulations has been debated, with Red Bull boss Christian Horner pushing for a change in the power deployment of the all-new engines set to be introduced. At present, plans are for the engines to have a 50-50 split between them in terms of power deployment from the internal combustion engine and a beefed-up electrical system, featuring 350kw, up from 120kw in 2025. However, simulations have found that at circuits with long straights, such as Monza, cars could run out of electrical energy halfway down straights, leading to run on the ICE only, with lift and coast expected to become a feature of racing unless a change is made. Horner wants a simple reduction to 60-40 in terms of ICE/battery, with Wolff previously labelling some of the topics discussed in the Commission meetings as "a joke" but now, the Mercedes boss has signalled he is to be "open-minded" about changes. "Obviously, the closer you come to new regulations, the more people act – all of us – in the interest of the team, that's their duty," he told media, including RacingNews365. " Where we're coming from is we don't know how it's going to pan out next year. Are we going to see energy harvesting disasters in Baku or Monza? I don't know. We hope not.  "We'll see the final product next year in testing. As a power unit manufacturer, we want this to be a great show. We want to win, but we are also aware that in the sport, there needs to be variability and unpredictability.  "We enjoyed the years from 2014 onwards, but over a prolonged period of time, that's certainly not the best for the sport.  "I try to be very balanced between what is good for Mercedes, which I need to do, and what is the right solution going forward. We need to avoid these swings.  "The 50% electric back in the day was where road cars were going to, and it was a reason to attract manufacturers like Audi and Porsche. So, we did that.  "It's difficult to change the goalposts, especially for the new ones. Honda recommitted, and Audi committed, and including us, they are not keen on changing those goalposts at this stage. But we need to be open-minded if necessary."