Toto Wolff says Ferrari blocked Mercedes’ preferred 50 kW engine power increase for the 2027 Formula 1 season, leaving the championship set to introduce a smaller 20 kW step before a further 50 kW increase in 2028. The Mercedes team principal revealed the disagreement while discussing the complexity of the current power units and Formula 1’s possible return to V8 engines after 2030.
The dispute highlights the competing priorities facing manufacturers as Formula 1 begins adjusting the balance between combustion and electrical power. The 2026 regulations introduced an approximately equal performance split, placing unprecedented importance on the battery and electrical side of the new power units.
Toto Wolff supports Formula 1’s possible return to V8 engines
Toto Wolff has given his clear support to the possibility of Formula 1 returning to V8 power units during the championship’s next regulatory cycle. That change is currently expected in 2031, although it could potentially be brought forward to 2030.
FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has already expressed his intention to move Formula 1 away from the turbo-hybrid era that began in 2014. Mercedes has recorded 126 race victories, eight Constructors’ Championships and seven Drivers’ Championships during that period, with the opportunity to add further success during the 2026 season.
The proposed direction would make the internal combustion engine responsible for a greater proportion of the total power while retaining a smaller battery system similar in principle to the former KERS technology. The discussion comes as Mercedes and Ferrari are already contesting the performance and development of the 2026 engines, including continuing questions surrounding Ferrari’s measured power-unit deficit.
Toto Wolff explains why the current F1 engines are so complex
Speaking to RN365, Toto Wolff confirmed that he remains in regular contact with the main figures involved in Formula 1’s future engine discussions.
“I am talking to FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, and I am talking to Stefano Domenicali and the other engine manufacturers,” Toto Wolff explained.
The Austrian executive also emphasised the complexity of the current regulations and the extent to which the new power units have altered the nature of racing.
“These engines are so complex at the moment, and we are starting to get our heads around them because they have changed racing; some people love Sundays and the races because there is so much overtaking, others do not, but the most adaptable drivers win,” Toto Wolff said.
That assessment forms part of the wider debate about how the 2026 regulations have changed wheel-to-wheel racing, with drivers required to adapt their techniques to new energy-management demands.
Toto Wolff also criticised the sound produced by the cars during certain phases of a Grand Prix weekend.
“I cannot stand the cars idling on the grid for 10 seconds before the start; it sounds like a fire alarm,” the Mercedes team principal admitted.
He then highlighted how differently drivers have responded to the demands of the new generation of cars and power units.
“Look at Lewis Hamilton, he has changed and his performance has changed massively; Andrea Kimi Antonelli is doing very well, and others have had to adapt,” Toto Wolff observed.
Formula 1 could move towards an 80:20 combustion and battery split
Over the medium to long term, Formula 1 is expected to return to a configuration in which the combustion engine provides most of the performance. Toto Wolff believes this transition could happen within the next three or four years.
“In the medium to long term, looking at a three-to-four-year horizon as things stand at the moment, we will return to a combustion engine that represents more than 50 per cent of performance,” Toto Wolff explained.
The Mercedes team principal also outlined the preferred direction of Mohammed Ben Sulayem, which would involve a V8 engine, a smaller electrical contribution and a combined output of approximately 1,000 horsepower.
“Mohammed Ben Sulayem wants a V8 that sounds good and a more limited battery. I believe it will be around 80:20 in terms of the power split between the combustion engine and the battery, with 1,000 horsepower,” Toto Wolff revealed.
Several important technical details have yet to be decided, including whether the future combustion engine would use forced induction.
“I am not sure whether it will be naturally aspirated or not, but I think this is the direction Formula 1 is heading at the moment, and as a purist I appreciate it,” Toto Wolff concluded.
How the F1 power-unit split will change in 2027 and 2028
Formula 1 is expected to begin moving away from the approximate 50:50 balance introduced for 2026 during the following two seasons. The planned transition would progressively shift the ratio towards 60:40 in favour of the internal combustion engine, with the change achieved by increasing the fuel flow available to it.
The intermediate steps are separate from the ADUO development mechanism governing the current power-unit competition. Instead, the proposed changes would alter the basic energy balance available to every manufacturer.
Toto Wolff explained that making the full change immediately would have required substantial engine redesign work. “We will take another step next year and then another step again, but the engine has to be redesigned,” the Mercedes team principal explained.
Increasing the fuel flow would provide more combustion-engine power, but Toto Wolff stressed that manufacturers would also need to modify physical components within their power units: “If you increase the fuel flow, which is what we are doing, you get more horsepower, and then there is hardware that has to be adapted,” Toto Wolff continued.
Toto Wolff says Ferrari blocked Mercedes’ preferred 50 kW increase
According to Toto Wolff, Mercedes wanted Formula 1 to approve an additional 50 kW of combustion-engine power for 2027. Ferrari opposed that proposal, resulting in the smaller 20 kW step before the larger increase scheduled for 2028: “We would have liked 50 kW more engine power for next year, but Ferrari blocked it, so we will take a 20 kW step and then a 50 kW step in 2028,” Toto Wolff revealed.
The disagreement adds another dimension to the technical rivalry between Mercedes and the Maranello manufacturer. Ferrari is already pursuing further performance through its planned 2026 Monza power-unit upgrade, while the longer-term negotiations will help determine the basic character of Formula 1 engines beyond the current regulatory cycle.
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