Impasse over F1 engine freeze

The results of last Sunday’s Imola F1 Grand Prix saw yet another record when Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas’ one-two finish meant Mercedes were Constructor’s Champions for the seventh consecutive year – an amazing feat.

Also amazing was the unanimous opinion from drivers this is a great track and they want more like it. It seems the move away from the iconic circuits to more modern, sterilised versions do not provide the really fast, challenging races faced by drivers of yesteryear. Many of the current pack, given the opportunity, would love that experience.

On 21 October, I mentioned the proposed meeting between teams, the FIA and Liberty Media regarding the future of F1 engines. The meeting was duly held and as usual not everything went according to plan. As I wrote, it was Red Bull and Alpha Tauri who had the most to say due to Honda’s withdrawal at the end of 2021, leaving them without motive power and considering the takeover of Honda’s Intellectual Property to build the power unit in-house.

This suggestion was surprisingly supported by Mercedes’ Toto Wolff – so far, so good. But then Red Bull’s Dr Helmut Marko added a proviso when he said: “Our priority is to continue with Honda until the new engine regulations, if it is financially reasonable. That means no further development is allowed after an engine freeze coming in from 2022.”

New engine regulations are scheduled for 2026. Some, including Wolff, have no objection to this being brought forward, but it was opposed by Ferrari whose team chief, Mattia Binotto, said in an interview: “Before discussing the freeze, I think it is more important to talk about other issues. For example, 2026 and the new technical architecture of the engines. How to deal with the costs and which technologies to employ. Then, having dealt with these issues, we can talk about freezes.”

The Scuderia are not alone as Renault F1 agree there should be no freeze on development from 2022 and, lest we forget, Ferrari still has the power to veto such decisions. The meeting was postponed, but Marko was quick to add the Red Bull teams would consider leaving the sport if they had to return to being an engine customer team. This could be the case if the proposed Honda IP takeover and engine freeze were not accepted. He added they needed a decision by 15 November that was their deadline.

Such demands have not gone down well with FIA President Jean Todt, who stated: “In May, Red Bull told us that under no circumstances should there be a development freeze because Honda would quit. Now they want the opposite. I will not be blackmailed. In the end, what counts must be the right arguments, not any threats.”

Marko responded: “This is not blackmail, this is a fact. If there is no development stop, we cannot carry out the Honda project. With these complex engines, further development is not possible without a development centre like Sakura. And the costs of that are not affordable.” Stalemate?

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