As automakers around the world invest heavily in electric vehicles, F1 is not ignoring the huge benefits that can be achieved globally by pioneering cheap rechargeable carbon neutral fuel to help power cars. two billion internal combustion engines that will remain on the roads for decades to come.
But while the new engine and fuel rules for 2026 are something F1 bosses are excited about, some don’t understand why the series is waiting so long to make the change.
Sebastian Vettel, who has been outspoken on environmental issues, said in a lengthy interview last year that he wanted Grand Prix racing to go faster by switching to sustainable fuels.
“We have an engine in place next year [for 2022] and we will only have 10% e-fuel content in the car – which, from a technological point of view, is not a revolution,” he said.
“You can already buy this fuel at the pump for several years as a customer from all over the world. So this is nothing new.
“I don’t think it matches the kind of ambitions Formula 1 has to be a technology leader. So we are reacting, rather than being proactive and leading the way.”
Sebastian Vettel, Williams FW14B Renault
Photo by: Dom Romney/Motorsport Images
He went on to explain that waiting until 2026 to introduce sustainable fuels meant “another five years of no progress”.
“I think it will put our sport under enormous pressure, because I think in these five years there will be a lot of changes, hopefully applied around the world, and putting things under pressure that don’t have applied no changes.”
But despite Vettel’s sentiments on the matter, and the fact that other top-tier FIA championships like the WRC and WTCR have already switched to sustainable fuel, F1 is sticking to its plan to wait until 2026.
The reason is not because she does not see the importance of the change, but rather for reasons of fairness between the current entrants.
With F1 being such a competitive arena and various manufacturers having spent hundreds of millions on their current engines to run perfectly in sync with their oil and petrol suppliers, throwing a spanner in the works now with brand new fuel, risked unfairly shake things up.
It would have been almost inevitable that an instant switch to sustainable fuel would affect different engines in different ways in unpredictable ways, leaving winners and losers.
And for those out of shape, with an engine frozen in place, it would have been three years of guaranteed struggles before they could do something different for 2026.
F1 is clear that it wants to give all current teams and engine manufacturers the same opportunity to get the most out of the new fuel, which is why waiting until 2026 when the new engine regulations come into force makes more sense.
Additionally, with Formula 2 and Formula 3 poised to pioneer fully sustainable fuels from next year to help F1 and oil partner Aramco better understand their impact, F1 has a pretty good platform to make sure she gets on track when she does. make the move.
Ross Brawn, Managing Director of Motorsport, FOM
Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images
F1 managing director of motorsport Ross Brawn told Autosport: “I think when you introduce a fuel you are never quite sure what impact it will have on different engines.
“That’s why we are holding back in F1, to tell the teams and the OEMs that when we present the new engines for 2026, it will be with sustainable fuel.
“This means there is no gain or loss for a driver in terms of competitiveness compared to the engines we have today. It would be unfair to introduce a sustainable fuel [right now] because the characteristics are a little different, and the F1 is always at the cutting edge of technology.
“You may find on a sustainable fuel that someone has less potential than others. But with the new engines, they all start from the same baseline with a lot less concern about that aspect.”
Brawn admits that the technology around sustainable fuels, especially synthetically created ones, is changing rapidly and what seems cutting edge today may not be the case in a few years.
That’s why he thinks it’s essential that F1 and the FIA are flexible in their approach to ensure that what happens for 2026 works for manufacturers and meets the goals of advancing knowledge.
He sees great value in getting a head start with F2 and F3 in understanding the impact of sustainable fuels in top-level single-seaters.
“Fuel regulations have been developed and fuel regulations will need to reflect technologies that are evolving quite rapidly over the next few years,” he said.
“I think with Aramco, working with ourselves, working with the FIA, it will be a laboratory to make sure the regulations are fair. If there are any challenges or differences from our point starting point, or if they start to evolve, then the regulations can recognize that.
“Until you start using these fuels in a racing environment, that’s not going to happen. So it’s a perfect testing ground to evaluate these fuels and make sure we have the right regulations when we let’s go full speed in F1.”
Brawn is also aware that, in an environment as ultra-competitive as F1, rival oil companies are not trying to destroy good intentions by pursuing clever ideas that only serve their own sporting interests.
“I think where Aramco benefits us is that they give us real knowledge,” Brawn added. “So when we come across someone who comes up with a complex solution that they think is the only way to do it, we know if it’s true or not.
“F1 [teams] will always be looking for competitive advantage, and the FIA will need to ensure that this is contained and that any evolving technologies are fair and available to all participants.
“We are particularly sensitive to ensuring that there is not a single technology that is only available to one oil company, as this will not encourage all oil companies to devote the effort and resources that we want.”
One thing Brawn is absolutely clear about is that the benefits of F1’s sustainable fuel boost will be substantial, and that’s exactly why new carmakers like Audi have jumped on board.
“We believe this is one of the solutions to the environmental challenge,” he said. “We’ve mentioned it many times, but there are two billion ICEs on the road. They’re not going away.
“But if we can have a plug-in fuel, which is carbon neutral, and we can start distributing that fuel around the world, then we have a solution for existing engines, and also quite frankly a solution for places where the infrastructure for electric cars simply does not exist and will not be built for a few years.
“We’re championing alternative technology. And I think the OEMs see the value in that and that’s why they’re doing F1.”
