Ferrari were banned from F1's 2026 engine regulations discussions until they made a U-turn

Recent reports from Italy's Corriere dello Sport reveal that Ferrari has finally agreed to the power unit changes starting in 2026. Previously, the Italian team was opposed to the introduction of a new 1.6-liter V6 engine with increased electrical power and 100% sustainable fuels. There is also going to be a cost cap on the power unit, which will further level the F1 grid and promote closer racing.

Despite Ferrari's opposition, all other active manufacturers like Mercedes, Renault, and future manufacturer Audi have already signed up for the new regulation. The scarlet team was even banned from a meeting of power unit suppliers that was held in December. They were mainly against Red Bull being considered a new engine manufacturer despite having access to Honda's intellectual property.

Being one of the oldest and most prestigious teams on the F1 grid, Ferrari has the special power to veto any regulations that the FIA imposes. After they opposed the new power unit regulations, many thought that the team might use its veto power against the new rule.

However, the Italian team has now changed its mind and agreed to the new 2026 power unit regulations. Since they were the last power unit supplier to agree to these new regulations, the FIA has now taken the next step to further focus on other regulations. F1's chief technical officer, Pat Symonds, explained how the sport is now focusing on chassis regulations, saying:

“The power unit regulations are out and published, they’re not finished, we’re now really tidying up. The chassis regulations we have been working on for a while now, a couple of years on some basic layout, but on January 25 we’ve got a big meeting in Geneva with all the teams, and that’s the first sort of real interaction where we sit down with the teams and we say ‘here are the concepts we want to bring into ’26’ and we start getting their views on that.”

On January 25th, 2023, all teams will have another meeting with the heads of the sport and the FIA to discuss all the new regulations coming into effect in 2026.

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FIA president believes Frederic Vasseur is the right person to lead Ferrari

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem believes Frederic Vasseur is the right man to lead Ferrari. He appreciated that the team appointed the Frenchman and that it was a performance-based choice. Ben Sulayem said:

"That was a performance-based choice, I think. But I believe that they did the right thing. When Ferrari won, they had a lot of diversity. It's not about whether Italians are better than French or Germans. It's about finding the right person. Even if all teams have the same engine and the same team boss, only one can win in the end. Whether they have the right ingredients, nobody knows except Ferrari."

Frederic Vasseur has already started working with the team in Maranello and has had talks with both Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz. The Italian team will pick themselves up after the 2022 F1 season and fight for the world championship in 2023.