Red Bull now have Mohamed Ben Sulayem’s support over key Formula 1 rule change Toto Wolff would detest

The most exciting battles in Formula 1 happen on the track, but the politics in the background of the sport are arguably just as important.

Formula 1 is full of examples of team principals fighting tooth and nail for rule changes that they know will improve their chances, or sometimes more importantly, harm one of their rivals.

This season has seen several examples of this already.

McLaren are the fastest team on the grid, but that hasn’t stopped Red Bull in particular and their rivals from heavily scrutinising their cars.

The FIA studied McLaren and Ferrari’s cars after pre-season off the back of a complaint from Red Bull about their rear wings.

After the Australian Grand Prix, the FIA was furious with all 10 teams for finding a loophole in their rules that has been closed, and from the Spanish Grand Prix onwards, every car’s front wing will need to adhere to stricter flexibility tests.

McLaren have faced excessive tests from F1’s sporting body but at this stage, haven’t received any penalties.

Soon, every team will turn their full attention to 2026’s new regulations with debates still ongoing about the best way to approach the rules, and now Red Bull may have the support of president Mohammed Ben Sulayem over one key issue.

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Red Bull and Mohammed Ben Sulayem agree over 2026 power unit changes

A report from Auto Motor und Sport has shared more details about how the FIA president and Red Bull feel about next year’s engines.

From 2026, each team will need to use a power unit that combines an internal combustion engine and a more powerful battery component.

However, there are several teams who are already concerned about these rules, including Red Bull, while newcomers Cadillac are also keen on ‘any form of simplification’.

Ferrari are said to quietly agree with Red Bull over simplifying F1’s power unit rules, and now Ben Sulayem is believed to have ‘sided’ with Christian Horner’s team on the issue.

Ben Sulayem pushed for a return to V10 engines and is said to be worried about teams deliberately driving slower than their ultimate potential due to concerns over how the engines perform over race distances.

This could be seen as a change the FIA pushed for in August 2022 backfiring and making them look bad, while speaking about the issue previously, Horner insisted, “If it’s in the interest of the sport that we avoid too much lift-and-coast, then I think it’s worth considering reducing the electric power in racing.

“It doesn’t change the specification or the performance of the engine. It’s just about battery usage.”

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Why Mercedes will be so upset with Mohammed Ben Sulayem siding with Red Bull

One of the most exciting and intense rivalries in recent Formula 1 has been between Mercedes and Red Bull, and in particular, Horner and Toto Wolff.

This escalated into one of the most controversial moments in F1 history when Max Verstappen pipped Lewis Hamilton to the drivers’ championship in 2021.

The Red Bull driver has won every championship since that moment, although his streak is at risk this year from Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris.

Mercedes are said to have the strongest power unit for 2026, having expertly negotiated the last major engine change in 2014.

The last thing Wolff or his team will want is for Red Bull to be able to influence any change that removes their supposed advantage.

Formula 1 is producing some extremely close racing on the track, but what happens off it may have a much bigger, long-term impact.