Audi and Porsche at the gates of Formula 1

The final decision is said to be ratified next week by the German group’s board of directors, which is scheduled for April 5. If, as expected, the “green light” is given, all that remains is the official announcement. In fact, a source within the company reportedly said that “in these days we hope to announce our intention to move into Formula 1”.

This announcement could clarify whether the two companies will enter the sport with purely their own team or whether they will only be engine suppliers. In recent months there have been rumors that the German concern is collaborating with Red Bull Racing, buying Alpha Tauri or McLaren, supplying engines to McLaren or Williams and many more.

The latest rumor is that Audi will officially present a $500 million investment or acquisition of McLaren and that Red Bull intends to develop a long-term relationship with RBR to supply engines. Something like this “shows” indirectly as a possible scenario and the Red Bull Racing consultant Dr. Helmut Marco, as he stated a few days ago, that such a cooperation is “useful”.

“It makes sense that we are the most attractive partner for a manufacturer and it is being discussed in all directions.” said the Austrian. “Max Ferstappen is clearly an important piece of the puzzle. If I would like to see Max in one red bull with their sign Porsche; “If I say yes, you’ll think we’ve already reached some sort of agreement.”

Over the past year Red Bull Racing has invested heavily in the construction and staffing of its new F1 engine plant adjacent to its car plant in Milton Keynes, Northampton. The newly formed Red Bull Powertrains has already started hiring many top engineers from Honda who left F1 at the end of 2021, but also from Mercedes.

Red Bull Racing’s investment now seems hopeless in the face of an upcoming partnership with Porsche – but that doesn’t mean the factory can stop existing by changing its label from Red Bull Powertrains to Porsche Powertrains or something like that. After all, Mercedes-Benz does not build F1 engines in Germany, but in Brixworth, UK – just 50 miles from Milton Keynes.

Returning to the rumors of the Volkswagen Group’s imminent entry into Formula 1 in 2026, recently hinted at by the sport’s CEO Stefano Domenicali, who asked a related question with the phrase “stay tuned and you’ll see soon”. answered.

Last December, Audi CEO Markus Duesmann sent a letter to then-FIA President Jean Todt informing him of the company’s impending entry into Formula One after the World Motorsports Council approved a “regulatory framework”. The same letter states that Audi hopes to confirm its entry into Formula 1 “early 2022”.

The specific regulatory framework concerns the power units that the F1 cars will have in 2026. Among other things, while generally retaining the philosophy of today’s hybrid engines, they place more emphasis on electricity, although – at the request of the Volkswagen Group – require the removal of one of the two electric motors (the MGU-K, the heat energy from inside the turbo pulls). They also envisage the use of 100% sustainable fuels.