Mohammed Ben Sulayem still ‘very much focused’ on key F1 engine change after 2026 V10 switch rejected

With each passing Formula 1 race weekend, all 10 teams in the paddock – and the new Cadillac outfit – take a step closer to entering the newest age of the sport.

Although McLaren appear to be the dominating force in F1 this season, the grid is much more tightly knit than in many previous eras.

Oliver Bearman set the slowest time in qualifying at the Bahrain Grand Prix, and even though he admitted he made mistakes during the session, he was still less than a second behind Oscar Piastri, who set the fastest lap in Q1.

Bearman had a phenomenal race to finish in the top 10, and after four race weekends, every manufacturer has scored points.

The competitiveness of this season is set to be traded for the unknown when Formula 1’s regulations change in 2026.

One of the biggest concerns about next year’s ruleset is the new power units, which will be split between an internal combustion engine and electric battery power.

While the talk about those power units being abandoned for Bernie Ecclestone’s suggested V10 engines has been rejected, FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem offered more details on the direction he wants to go in heading forward.

READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen agreed ‘for once’ when discussing major F1 proposal at Chinese Grand Prix

Mohammed Ben Sulayem ‘focused’ on changing F1 engine rules in 2029

Journalist Jon Noble was speaking on a podcast for The Race Members Club from the paddock in Bahrain about an encounter he had with the FIA president.

Noble explained: “I had quite an interesting wander down the paddock today between FP3 and qualifying, just sat in a little huddle with David Croft and Mohammed Ben Sulayem turned up.

“He wandered over to us to say hello, and we just started talking about engines basically.

“He talked about yesterday’s meeting, he was quite happy with the outcome of it.

“But I think the messaging from him is clear, that while the manufacturers have kind of kicked the can down the road on the V10 engine, they’re committing to 2026, they want to make these next turbo hybrid rules work, he’s still very much focused on an alternative engine coming in for 2029.

Formula 1 confirms that all teams have signed the 2026 Concorde Commercial Agreement 🤝#F1 https://t.co/Z0D1PDqd4I

— Formula 1 (@F1) March 16, 2025

“He thinks it will be a lot cheaper in the long run, he says we need to protect F1 from potential economic downturn, or manufacturers leaving, so he’s pushing quite hard on the costs.

“He thinks it can help save weight, he thinks it’ll be easy to make it less complex, simpler for manufacturers to do, it will solve the noise problem, and he suggested that the battery element will remain, but the split between ICE power and battery power which next year is roughly 50/50, but depending on qualifying, practice or the race, shifts around a little bit.

“But it will likely go 90% ICE, 10% electric if and when this engine comes in. So, a few little details he offered out.”

READ MORE: Mohammed Ben Sulayem could tempt 10-time constructors’ champions back to F1 with return to V10 engines

Mohammed Ben Sulayem dodges question on whether he’ll stand as FIA president

Another big talking point this year surrounds Ben Sulayem’s FIA presidency as his tenure comes to an end this winter.

Damon Hill thinks Susie Wolff would be the perfect FIA president candidate, although it doesn’t appear as though she’s going to run for the role.

Noble asked Ben Sulayem about his future with the FIA and said: “We then tried to push him on if he was going to stand again as president, it’s obviously been a hot topic, and he wouldn’t give us an answer.

“He was smiling at us, and dodging the questions, and we didn’t get an answer from him, so we can read into that what we think.”

Straw: “Well, I think we’re all assuming he’s going to stand again, and he probably thinks he’s in quite a good position whatever happens.”

More details about Ben Sulayem’s FIA candidacy will emerge in the future, although Robert Reid, who ran alongside the Emirati, quit ahead of the race in Bahrain, which has raised questions.

It’s another topic that’s set to rumble on as the season continues.