F1, Ferrari: what did the Maranello team get for agreeing to 2026 engine rules?

Red Bull Powertrains Limited is a new manufacturer and will be able to enjoy the advantages that the 2026 engine regulation will grant to those who produce F1 power units, being able to count on an investment of $25 million more over three years and more hours at the test bench for development.

Corriere dello Sport anticipated the news according to which Ferrari would have agreed to sign the 2026 regulation, losing the first political battle because it remained isolated in the challenge it was carrying out with a hard task on its own, so much so that the Prancing Horse had not been invited to the mid-December meeting, not having signed the deal at the previous meeting in disagreement with the decisions that had been taken.

From the information collected by Motorsport.com, however, the Scuderia has defined a pre-agreement that precedes the signing of the 2026 power unit regulation, with the top management of Maranello who dropped the matter with a smile on their face.

It is evident that there is a strong discrepancy between the two visions, but it is equally clear that Ferrari must have received something important in return, after having expressed its point of view to the FIA, even without putting on the table the right to veto that Ferrari could have used.

The championship promoter would not have liked a split between the teams in Formula 1, because it would have caused damage to its image at a time when the GPs are gathering the greatest attention.

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And, then, what is behind the recognition of Red Bull Powertrains Limited as a new manufacturer ? According to rumors, the Scuderia would have managed to set limits on some points of the discussion that were part of its dissent.

Audi, for example, had asked to ban the use of 3D additive manufacturing for the production of structural engine parts such as the crankcase and cylinder head, forcing all manufacturers to return to castings. Ferrari did not agree with this because the series production of the Maranello team will also move in this direction and F1 did not have to give up an innovation process, especially if it would have allowed for cost optimization according to the constraints of the budget cap.

The question to ask, therefore, is what did Ferrari get in return to end a dispute that was going on beyond expectations? Time will tell.