Christian Horner, the head of Red Bull Racing, has said that if a deal is to be made, Porsche will not be able to invest in the team and will have to enter Formula 1 under Red Bull’s terms.
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h.c. Dr. Ing. F. German automaker Porsche AG, commonly abbreviated as Porsche AG, is known for its high-performance vehicles and engines. It is believed to be the biggest and most prosperous racing vehicle company in the world, and it is based in Stuttgart.
From 1957 to 1964, Porsche vehicles powered by either Flat-4 or Flat-8 air-cooled engines participated in Formula One. Dan Gurney, driving for them, claimed their lone championship triumph at the 1962 French Grand Prix.
For its Formula 1 entry, Audi claims it chose to construct a distinct engine from Porsche in order to facilitate easier cooperation with various chassis.
At the Belgian Grand Prix on Friday, the German automaker finally announced its participation in Formula One for the 2026 season, announcing it would be building and producing its own power unit from its Neuburg headquarters. Although there has not yet been a formal announcement regarding the partnership, it will involve Sauber.
Audi’s intention to build its own engine has generated some interest because sister company Porsche will be teaming up with the Milton Keynes-based team to use its own engine as well. Porsche is anticipated to announce its entry with Red Bull in the coming weeks.
As a result, parent firm VW will have to invest more money in two distinct engine development programs than if they just shared ideas and rebadged them.
Markus Deusmann, chairman of the board at Audi, revealed that there had been extensive internal debate inside the firm about whether or not to pool engine resources with Porsche before the decision to have distinct projects was made.
In the end, he claimed that the demand for Audi to act independently came from the need to optimize power units for certain teams.
He remarked, “You can imagine there was a big discussion. “But we choose to keep it totally independent and conduct two operations because both of our brands have large followings and distinctive personalities.
“We had a number of explanations for that. There will be various teams, thus the powerplant needs to be specifically tailored to the chassis. Because we would have entirely distinct chassis and powertrains, that is why we opted to split it.
“To fulfill the deadline, the integration work of the electrified side on the powertrain, coupled with the chassis, it costs time to produce it in two cars,” said Oliver Hoffmann, head of Audi technical development. Therefore, it’s entirely different operations, and we will handle the integration work ourselves.
If Audi wants to be competitive starting in 2026, it will need to catch up to other manufacturers like Mercedes and Ferrari in terms of its understanding of the F1’s turbo hybrid rules.
The car business believes it will be able to catch up eventually because of the way new laws have been written to give more freedom to new competitors.
Hoffmann continued, “First of all, completing this task [by] 2026 is going to be a significant challenge.
“However, I believe that we are able to work out some compromises with the rules so that we can enter on [equal terms] with all of the other competitors, and we love the challenge.
“In less than a year, we were able to run the Dakar and construct the Dakar car, which also has a very sophisticated drivetrain. And by 2026, I believe we will be able to create this powertrain as well.
Well, it’s obvious that we are in the situation that we are in, Deusmann remarked. And the others already have functional powertrains. However, the size of the regulation modifications gave us the opportunity to intervene and compete.
Why is Porsche lacking an F1 vehicle?
One of the most well-known brands in auto racing is Porsche, and they have vehicles in several races. Additionally, they are among the most well-known automobile names outside of the racing world. It is therefore reasonable to inquire why Porsche does not have an F1 vehicle.
Porsche doesn’t own an F1 car for a number of reasons, but the primary one is that it doesn’t align with their corporate ideals because it deviates too much from their focus on road cars. They don’t have an F1 car for another major reason, but they do compete in other motorsports.
Porsche dominates the luxury and sports car markets, which deters them from prioritizing motorsport. To understand why they are no longer in Formula 1, however, it is important to consider their former involvement in the sport as well as their numerous other motorsport ventures.
Porsche isn’t in Formula One; why?
However, there have been whispers flying around recently that Porsche will return to the Formula One scene. It was made known that the group was developing a new engine, specifically a V6. The 2022 FIA regulations mandate that the new generation of vehicles have this size of engine, and that is what they are now employing. Porsche may have the ideal opportunity here.
Porsche was pulling out of Le Mans, which put a stop to the development of an F1-compatible engine. There was no longer a need to develop a combustion engine for either endurance racing or for a hypothetical return to Formula 1. The primary reason for this is that Porsche chose to concentrate on competing in Formula E, which only accepts electric vehicles.
Since its disastrous 1991 season, Porsche has come the closest to returning to Formula 1. Porsche has decided not to devote any more of its road car attention to racing at this time due to the high cost of designing and manufacturing F1 engines and vehicles.
Nevertheless, it was declared in 2022 that Porsche would rejoin F1 as a result of the anticipated regulation revisions for 2026. It’s possible that they will collaborate with Red Bull in some capacity, but it’s unclear how exactly things will turn out.
Porsche competes in Formula One?
Porsche hasn’t competed in Formula One since Footwork replaced the Porsche engines with Cosworth DFRs. In addition to having insufficient horsepower, the 3512 reportedly had serious oil starvation issues that frequently resulted in engine failure.
Porsche: F1 Sponsor?
By partnering with the dominant 2022 F1 championship leader’s engine programme and purchasing a 50% stake in its race team, Porsche was prepared to wed itself to Red Bull for ten years. Before the FIA postponed the final language of the 2026 power unit regulations, the union was scheduled to be announced at the Austrian Grand Prix in early July. A date of August 4 was soon specified in Moroccan legal documents, but the day passed without the arrangement being officially disclosed.
Before the end of the month of August, Red Bull team principal Christian Horner started to emphasize how crucial it was for any new stakeholder to suit the organization’s “concept and DNA” and said an evaluation procedure was still pending. Then, at Spa, Audi unexpectedly announced its participation in Formula One before its sister company, Volkswagen Group, did (initially revealing its plans to build an engine only, with news of its investment in the Sauber operation to follow later this year).
Porsche ultimately announced the marriage was over on the Friday morning of the Italian GP weekend. “Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG and Red Bull GmbH have held negotiations on the potential for Porsche’s entry into Formula 1 over the course of the last few months. The two businesses have now unanimously decided that these talks will no longer be continued,” read the brief statement.
“The idea was always that a relationship would be founded on an equal footing, and that this would apply to both the team and the engine collaboration. This was not feasible. Despite the finalized regulation revisions, Porsche continues to find the racing series to be a desirable environment, which will be closely watched.
Red Bull has proven its mettle in Formula 1. Naturally, we anticipate competing against the OEMs with both the powertrain and the chassis as an independent team and engine manufacturer.
Which Formula One team is Porsche buying?
Legal documents state that Porsche will buy a 50% stake in Red Bull Technology in order to partner with the team and enter Formula 1 in 2026.
When the new power unit regulations were announced earlier this year, VW stated that the Volkswagen Group was interested in competing in Formula One. Porsche and Audi were given the go-ahead to start developing their entry. Audi’s plans seem less firm at this time, but Porsche has frequently been associated with a relationship with Red Bull, and further information about the plans has now surfaced.
Although there is currently no formal confirmation, Morocco’s mandated publishing of the proposed deal has resulted from the requirement to submit evidence to antitrust authorities:
Porsche has agreed to buy a 50% investment in Red Bull Technology, according to the disclosure form, which claims the deal will be disclosed on August 4 and will need a 10-year commitment. Porsche is anticipated to provide the power unit, but the ownership stake may give it more sway.
Are Porsche and Audi entering Formula One?
Porsche and Audi will both compete in Formula 1, according to Herbert Diess, CEO of parent company Volkswagen Group.
Diess announced that the group’s Porsche and Audi brands will both participate in the sport during an online “Dialogue with Diess” question-and-answer session. He said, “You just run out of reasons [not to join F1].
The decision to enter F1 divided the Volkswagen Group board of directors, according to Diess, who also disclosed that the board ultimately decided to approve the move since it will generate more money than it will cost.
Will Audi ever compete in Formula One?
Audi, a car manufacturer, declared at a news conference in Spa, before of this weekend’s Belgian Grand Prix, that it will become a power unit constructor in Formula One in 2026.
Markus Duesmann, the chairman of Audi’s board of management, declared that “motorsport is an intrinsic part of Audi’s DNA.” “Our brand uses Formula One as both a worldwide stage and a very difficult development environment.
“In our industry, innovation and the transfer of technology are always fueled by a combination of great performance and competitiveness. The moment is right for us to become involved given the new regulations. After all, Audi and Formula One have distinct environmental objectives.”
The league’s new engine regulations for 2026 gave Audi the opportunity to compete on an even playing field with other power unit manufacturers that are already in F1 and allowed Audi to enter the sport.
Regarding Duesmann’s remarks on the company’s “clear sustainability aspirations,” F1 will no longer use the MGU-H unit under the new regulations, which also call for using totally sustainable fuels and additional electrical power.
At the press conference, F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali also made a statement about how thrilled the organization is to welcome Audi to the racing lineup.
Domenicali stated, “I am thrilled to welcome Audi to Formula One. Audi is an iconic automotive brand, pioneer, and technology innovation “This is a significant moment for our sport and it shows the tremendous strength we have as a rapidly expanding global platform.
We are all anticipating seeing the Audi badge on the grid and will be getting more information from them on their intentions in due course. It is also a huge recognition that our journey to sustainably powered hybrid engines in 2026 is a future solution for the automotive business.
Duesmann omitted to mention which partner Audi will work with. Rumors suggest that Audi will replace Alfa Romeo as the Sauber F1 team’s current sponsor. Alfa Romeo stated on Friday that it would sever ties with Sauber in 2023.
Audi is currently on track to join engine manufacturers Ferrari, Mercedes, Renault, and Red Bull Powertrains.