The 2026 F1 season is approaching, along with the introduction of new regulations. Red Bull’s team principal, Laurent Mekies, has revealed how work on the new engine is progressing.
While the current season is still undecided in terms of the Drivers’ Championship, teams are already focusing on next year. In 2026, Formula 1 will undergo major changes. The cars have been completely redesigned, along with all internal components. Next season also brings many uncertainties, particularly regarding the engine. In recent months, questions and doubts have emerged that will only be resolved when the cars hit the track for pre-season testing. Red Bull team principal Laurent Mekies offered a small update on how engine development is progressing at Milton Keynes.
A new challenge
In 2026, the Milton Keynes team will debut in F1 with a Red Bull-Ford engine. Laurent Mekies did not hide the challenge this change represents. Speaking on the Oracle Red Bull Racing podcast, he admitted: “Yes, I heard it [referring to the sound of the new engine]. Symbolically, it’s huge because there is no crazier challenge than that of Oracle Red Bull Racing deciding with Ford to build its own engine. There’s nothing crazier in recent F1 history. It’s a typical Red Bull kind of madness.”
Laurent Mekies also emphasized the importance of these final months of work with 2026 in mind: “Just hearing the sound is already insane, let alone whether it will be fast or not. So yes, the sound is there. It’s been on the test bench for a while now. Only a few months remain, so we are at the peak of stress to make sure we can really build it and get it on track.”
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