Development Battle: Reports Suggest Ferrari Already Tested Its 2026 Engine

Recent reports suggested that the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team has already tested its engines for the 2026 season.

In the year 2026, Formula One will enter a new era under significantly different regulations that will change the look and performance of the current F1 cars.

One of the main changes in 2026 will be centered around power units (PUs). As opposed to current PUs that still rely mainly on combustion engines, in 2026, 50% of the power output should come from the electrical part of the PU.

Power units might, therefore, be a crucial factor in the 2026 season that will determine which Formula One team will get a chance to compete for the title and which won't.

While we just concluded the 2023 season, and the teams currently focuse their efforts primarily on the year 2024, they already started power unit development for 2026 and will start shifting their focus as we approach the year.

Recent reports coming from it.motorsport.com suggest that Scuderia Ferrari already tested the six-cylinder engine which could power their 2026 car.

There are still two years remaining until we enter the new regulations, but it appears the Italian team has already made quite significant progress and might be ahead of the pack in terms of engine development.

On the other hand, the competition is quite fierce. There are currently four works teams (teams that manufacture power units) on the F1 grid, and the remaining teams are called customer teams as they purchase their engines from those four.

The four works teams include Red Bull (which collaborates with Honda), Mercedes, Ferrari, and Alpine. In 2026, Audi will join the grid as a works team, Honda will switch from Red Bull to Aston Martin, and Red Bull will produce its own engines.

The last time there was such a significant change in regulations was in 2014 when we entered the hybrid era. Back then, it lost Red Bull's dominance and started Mercedes's eight consecutive years of domination.

Could it be Ferrari that takes over the sport from the season 2026? The last time Ferrari believed they had a competitive car was at the beginning of 2023, and the team suffered a big shock. Who do you think will build the most suitable car for 2026 regulations?