Source: REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
[Saba Sports News] Mercedes and Red Bull clashed again as Toto Wolff compared the FIA’s proposal to revive the V10 engines to a “Twitter political joke” at the Saudi Grand Prix, while Christian Horner retorted, calling certain people “nervous.” This fierce showdown over engine rules for the 2026 season revealed that the debate over F1’s technical direction had reached boiling point. The spark for the conflict was the sudden revival of the V10 engine plan by FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem. During a closed-door meeting at the Bahrain Grand Prix, when Wolff heard about this proposal, the Mercedes team leader exploded: “This is just as absurd as hearing Trump say he wants to protect the environment.” It was reported that he even threatened the media after the meeting, saying, “If this proposal passes, I’ll resign tomorrow and go race electric Formula E.” However, the Red Bull team revealed that this research originated from a suggestion by Horner two years ago to address issues with the 2026 hybrid engines potentially causing problems in car performance. Technical experts pointed out that behind the verbal sparring lies a contest of approaches between the two camps. As the biggest beneficiary of the current hybrid system, Mercedes naturally opposes any changes; whereas Red Bull, due to lagging progress in its own engine development, leans more towards traditional power units. More subtly, the latest research shows that under the 2026 regulations, straight-line speeds will drop by 15%, which directly affected Mercedes, whose W16 is famous for its top speed. The outcome of this engine dispute may decide F1’s technical direction for the next decade.