Just weeks before the potential return of V10 engines made headlines, Christian Horner called on the F1 teams to put “self-interest” aside and focus on “entertainment”, and not “engineering utopia”.

F1 will debut a next generation of power units in 2026, the sport switching to engines that will run on fully sustainable fuel and incorporate a 50/50 split between electric and engine power.

Christian Horner: It’s modern-day chariot racing

Although using less energy and producing net zero exhaust CO2 emissions means the generation of power units will be kinder to the environment, there has recently been a call for a return to the V10 engines of yesteryear.

That call was made by FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who wrote on social media: “We should consider a range of directions, including the roaring sound of the V10 running on sustainable fuel.”

The FIA told PlanetF1.com that a working group would be established to “explore all possibilities”, including a “V10 power train running on sustainable fuel would be part of those considerations which would be tied to environmental and cost-containment measures.”

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But already the topic is dividing the Formula 1 team principals.

While Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff baulked at the idea, calling it “opportunistic thoughts”, Horner believes it would “reintroduce the sound of Grand Prix racing” to the sport.

It’s a topic that, especially with the FIA setting up the working group, will rumble on for months, if not longer, with every team and their engine manufacturers voicing their opinion. Opinions that history has made clear, best suits their own needs and objectives.

It’s no surprise that Mercedes want to continue with the turbocharged V6 engines given in 2014 they came to the fore when the first edition was introduced and rumours suggest they could have the advantage again in 2026.

It’s also no surprise that Red Bull, new to the power unit game with next year’s engine the first to come off the Red Bull Powertrain dyno, are open to changes.

But in a sport of “self-interest”, Horner recently called on the teams to work collectively to ensure that “entertainment” and not “engineering utopia” triumphs in Formula 1.

Asked about ‘collaboration’ in protecting the sport, Horner told talkSPORT: “I think that there needs to be an element of that. I mean, we’re US-owned now by Liberty immediately.

“And you know, the competition needs to be on the track or on the on the field, because there’s more to the business and I think as custodians of the sport, we have a responsibility for what is a sport going to be in the future, what should those future regulations be

“You have to decouple that from self-interest and think bigger picture of what is right for the business, what is right for the sport.

“I think that’s what Formula One is perhaps lacking a little at the moment; there’s too much self-interest, as opposed to thinking about the bigger picture. You know, what should the engines be in 2031, what should the cars be

“We shouldn’t be driven down an engineering utopia. It still needs to be entertainment.

“This is ultimately person and machine at the absolute limit, it’s modern-day chariot racing, it’s got to entertain if there’s going to be a sport.”

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