2026 engine rules rethink? Proposal could shift hybrid balance to 64/36 in races. 2026 regulations under review: 64/36 thermal-hybrid split only during races?.

o to V10s, but are the 2026 rules up for renegotiation?
If by the end of May some key regulatory aspects for the 2026 season are being reconsidered, it means that certain concerns whispered in the paddock about the possible superiority of some engine manufacturers (read: Mercedes) might actually be well-founded.
At the Bahrain meeting, the idea of a swift return to V10s was blocked – a political win for Mercedes, Honda and Audi – but Ferrari, Cadillac and Red Bull obtained a concession to revisit the system of allowances for the 2026 rules in case of performance gaps.

According to The Race, a meeting between Formula 1 executives and the teams will already take place this week to discuss a proposal to modify the ratio between combustion and hybrid engines, to avoid the risk that the cars could run out of energy during a lap.

The proposal
As is known, teams have long been working on the 50/50 split between combustion engine and battery, as outlined in the 2026 technical regulations. Behind the scenes, however, concerns have emerged about the possibility that on certain tracks – such as Monza or Spa – the cars could run out of energy halfway down the straight.

Some teams have thus pushed the Federation for further analysis to verify the validity of these theories, and during next week’s F1 Commission, a proposal will be made to maintain the 50/50 ratio only for qualifying, with changes applied to the races. During the Grand Prix, the proposal is to reduce the battery power output from 350 kW to 200 kW: this would shift the thermal/hybrid ratio to 64/36 (we recall that the current ratio is 85/15 in favor of the internal combustion engine).

For the proposal to become effective, a 70% consensus among the voters is required (10 votes for the teams, 10 for the FIA, and 10 for FOM/Liberty Media).

Christian Horner and Toto Wolff remain rivals
The main supporter of this change is Christian Horner, with Red Bull set to produce its own power units starting next year.
Firmly opposed, however, is Toto Wolff of Mercedes: “We should first see how next year turns out, rather than predict what will happen. In the Bahrain meeting, we were clear: in 12 months we’ll decide if anything needs to be done. There’s no data supporting these assumptions.”