Audi to enter Formula 1

Audi has officially announced that it will join Formula 1, starting in 2026.

Audi announced its entry at a press conference at the Formula 1 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. At the event, Markus Duesmann, Chairman of the Board of Management of Audi, and Oliver Hoffmann, Member of the Board of Management for Technical Development, answered questions in the company of Formula 1 President and CEO Stefano Domenicali and Mohammed ben Sulayem, President of the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

The company said that the deciding factor for it to enter F1 was the series’ plan to become more sustainable and cost-efficient, while the increasing popularity the series has seen in recent years (due in no small part to the popular Netflix ‘Drive to Survive’ streaming series), also played a large part in the company’s decision.

Formula 1’s new technical rules, which will apply from 2026, focus on greater electrification and advanced sustainable fuel. In addition to the existing cap on costs for teams, a cost cap for power unit manufacturers will be introduced in 2023, and Formula 1 has set itself the ambitious goal of being a carbon-neutral racing series by 2030.

READ MORE:
* Porsche and Audi set to enter Formula 1
* Audi reportedly raises its offer for McLaren
* Ken Block’s next Gymkhana video will be electric
* Formula 1 to run on ‘100 per cent sustainable’ biofuel by 2026

“Motorsport is an integral part of Audi’s DNA,” said Markus Duesmann. “Formula 1 is both a global stage for our brand and a highly challenging development laboratory. The combination of high performance and competition is always a driver of innovation and technology transfer in our industry. With the new rules, now is the right time for us to get involved. After all, Formula 1 and Audi both pursue clear sustainability goals.”

Formula 1 intends to switch to cars running on synthetic fuel from 2026 as part of its plan to become carbon-neutral by the end of the decade.

Audi Sport Managing Director Julius Seebach, who organised the entry into Formula 1 as part of Audi’s realignment of motorsport, said that the company’s power unit will be built at Audi Sport’s state-of-the-art facility in Neuburg an der Donau, not far from Audi’s company headquarters in Ingolstadt.

“For the development and manufacture of the Formula 1 power train, we will build on the valuable expertise of our motorsport employees, continue to invest in our motorsports centre, and also recruit highly specialised professionals,” he said.

Former FIA safety director Adam Baker will head up Audi’s Formula 1 project as CEO. Prior to his job at the FIA, Baker perviously spent 13 years with BMW where he was head of the race and test from 2013-2018, having responsibility for all of its racing programmes including Formula E, DTM and sportscars. He also did a 12-month stint as head of powertrain department for its World Superbike team.

Baker was also involved in the BMW Sauber F1 project that competed from 2006-2009, initially as an engine engineer and then as head of race and test, F1 powertrain. Before that, he worked as an F1 engine engineer for Cosworth.

Audi says it will announce a decision on which team they will be lining up with in 2026 by the end of this year.

Audi’s entry into Formula 1 will see it consolidate its motorsport efforts, discontinuing its LMDh project after having recently suspended the development of the sports car for endurance racing. The company will continue with the RS-Q e-tron in the Dakar Rally, aiming for an overall victory in the desert in next year’s race.

Audi and its fellow VW Group member, Porsche, have both been long-rumoured to enter F1, with Audi initially being linked with a buyout of the McLaren team. Both parties denied this, however. Meanwhile, documents have been leaked revealing Porsche’s intention to buy 50% of the Red Bull Racing Formula 1 team for a 2026 entry as well.