Aston Martin CEO and Team Principal Andy Cowell doesn’t think the 2026 changes to the Formula 1 engine regulations will shake up the series in a similar fashion to the introduction of hybrid power units in 2014.
Cowell knows the impact of the 2014 hybrid power units well, given he resided as Managing Director of Mercedes High Performance Powertrains (HPP) at the time.
In that position at Mercedes HPP, Cowell resided over an era of dominance by the Silver Arrows, propelling the team to eight successive Constructors’ titles from 2014 through 2021.
Now in charge of Aston Martin, Cowell doesn’t think a similar impact will be made to the pecking order by the engines changing next year.
That’s because the power unit changes are an evolution, not a revolution, whereby the current engines will be retained, with the absence of the MGU-H, the introduction of sustainable fuels and increased electrification.
Instead, Cowell believes the shakeup will come as a result of multiple changes across the entirety of the F1 regulations for 2026.
“Whenever there’s a regulation change, there’s the opportunity to do better than the others,” Cowell told select media including Motorsport Week.
“It’s somewhat of a reset. However, the change from 2013 to 2014 in regulation set on the propulsion unit was quite dramatic, going from naturally aspirated to direct injected, turbocharged, MGU-H battery, MGU-K that had to work, otherwise you were nowhere.
“Whereas 2025 to 2026 is take the H out, more complex from a turbo lag, bigger battery, bigger motor, less fuel flow, big challenge on the fuel.
“I’m not sure it’s quite such a dramatic change. It’s an adaptation of what’s been raced today.
“Maybe that’s understating it a little bit. But I guess the challenge is that there are aerodynamics regulation changes as well as power unit, as well as tyres.
“And so all of that together, all those differences when you add them up could well spread the field more.”
Debating the impact of the 2026 power units
The nature of the 2026 rule changes and the timeline in which they were implemented could have some implications on how the cars and the pecking order they establish plays out.
The power unit regulations were the first to be solidified and amid fears that the increased reliance on electrical power would demand greater energy conservation, the subsequent chassis and aero regulations have been designed to partially compensate.
That’s why before starting as Aston Martin’s Managing Technical Partner, Adrian Newey believed favour would swing to whomever has the strongest power unit next year.
Speaking to Auto Motor und Sport, Newey said: ”The reality is I can’t remember another time in Formula 1 when both the chassis regulations and the regulations have changed simultaneously.
“And in this case the chassis regulations have been very much written to try to compensate, let’s say, for the power unit regulations,” he continued.
“So, it’s an extra dimension. I think engine manufacturers will have learnt to an extent on the lack of preparation that the rivals to Mercedes did prior to that change [for 2014] but there has to be a chance that one manufacturer will come out well on top and it’ll become a power unit-dominated regulation, at least to start with.”
This could be worrying news to new OEMs such as Red Bull Powertrains or Audi.
The Audi F1 project has an ace up its sleeve, however, in Mattia Binotto, who, in the years before he was Team Principal at Ferrari once held the role of Head of Engines, a position he took on in 2014.
While he admits it “is quite possible” one team could dominate with a superior engine in 2026, he isn’t panicking as his long-term vision at Audi gives the new OEM time to recover.
“We shouldn’t worry about that, even if a manufacturer might start with an advantage,” he said.
“We have time to catch up. Therefore, we should not let ourselves get nervous if that happens.
“We need to focus on ourselves, learn, and draw the right conclusions.”
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