Audi’s Mattia Binotto defends current Formula 1 engine regulations amid V8 debate. F1 | Binotto not convinced by early switch to V8 Formula 1 engines.

Is Formula 1’s future powered by V8 engines?

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has made his position very clear: the engines of the future will most likely be hybrid V8 units — more powerful, louder, and lighter than the current power units — running on sustainable fuels and featuring a much greater emphasis on combustion power compared to the electrical component.

The concept is also attracting interest from several manufacturers, especially brands producing supercars that already offer partially electrified V8 engines in their road car line-ups. Audi, however, appears to have reacted differently. According to several paddock rumours, the German manufacturer — together with Honda — is among the companies opposed to Ben Sulayem’s idea of bringing forward the next technical cycle as early as 2029 or 2030.

Audi F1: Mattia Binotto urges caution

While Toto Wolff immediately declared himself enthusiastic about the possibility of returning to V8 engines — a particularly significant position considering Mercedes currently appears to hold the biggest technical advantage with the existing hybrid technology — Audi F1 project leader and team principal Mattia Binotto expressed a much more cautious opinion in Miami regarding the possibility of changing direction.

“What will the future be? I think it’s too early to say,” Mattia Binotto explained. “Certainly, we have started discussing it with the FIA and I think we will sit down together to discuss what is best for Formula 1.”

“I wouldn’t, however,” Mattia Binotto added, “be really so negative about the current regulations. In fact, I believe that overall it can be said that it is a good format. We have recently made small adjustments to the rules in order to refine and improve them further. Maybe we will do even more in the future and over the coming seasons, but I think we should also remain somewhat positive about what we are seeing.”

“And if you look back at the past, I think there were periods when Formula 1 was far more boring. We have always pursued highly efficient engines and I believe that is very important for Audi, but we will certainly discuss with Formula 1 and the FIA what the best compromise for the future will be.”