Formula 1: Audi and Porsche Officially Joining in 2026
It’s official, VW Group’s Porsche and Audi brands are set to enter the top tier of motorsport.
After years of rumours and gossip, it has finally been confirmed that VW Group’s Porsche and Audi brands will join Formula 1 in 2026, at least as engine suppliers. Speculations of Volkswagen’s entry into Formula 1 have been there for about a decade now. Each time, the discussions have met dead ends due to sustainability, synthetic fuels, and cost of entry.
Porsche and Audi join Formula 1
The Chairman of Volkswagen Group, Herbert Diess, confirmed on Monday that Porsche and Audi will both join Formula 1 in 2026. Audi will market its push towards larger and more expensive electrified road cars, while Porsche will promote itself as the “sportiest car brand in the world.”
Though there is no confirmation regarding which F1 teams the engines of each brand will power, Porsche has been linked with Red Bull Racing, which is looking for a new engine supplier after Honda’s departure last year. Audi is still searching for the F1 team. Rumours suggest that it might buy the entire McLaren F1 team.
Diess stated that the decision to enter Formula 1 in 2026 is coinciding with the new engine regulations that will push toward hybrid systems that are aided by synthetic fuels. He said, “Formula One is developing extremely positively worldwide. The marketing that is happening there, plus Netflix [through the Drive to Survive TV show], has led to Formula One’s following growing significantly in the US as well. Asia is [also] growing significantly.”
“If you look at the major sporting events or events in the world … in motorsport, it’s really only Formula 1 that counts and is becoming increasingly differentiated. If you do motorsport, you should do Formula One, as that’s where the impact is greatest. What’s more, you can’t enter Formula One unless a technology window opens up, which means, in order to get in there, a rule change: so that everyone starts again from the same place.”… You usually make up one second per season on a medium-sized racetrack simply by optimising details. But you can’t catch up on that when you join a new team: you need five or 10 years to be among the front runners. In other words, you can only get on board if you have a major rule change.”
“That’s coming now, and it will also come in the direction of 2026, when the engines will be electrified to a much greater extent, including with synthetic fuels. That means you need a new engine development, and you need three or four years to develop a new engine.
“That means you can decide now to do Formula One – or then probably not again for 10 years. And our two premium brands think that’s the right thing to do and are prioritising it.”
“Both premium brands believe that F1 will also be very sustainable. Formula 1 will run on synthetic fuels, be CO2 neutral, and have a much higher percentage of electrification.”
“We assume it will still be the biggest motor show in the world in 2026, in 2028. Much more than today – more in China, more in the United States than is the case today. And therefore, also the largest marketing platform for premium vehicles. This is the prerequisite.”
Though Porsche and Audi will enter Formula 1 soon, Diess said that there are no plans for Volkswagen to follow. He said, “Porsche has to be the sportiest car brand in the world – so Porsche has to do motorsport. And you come to the conclusion: if Porsche does motorsport, the most efficient thing is to do Formula One. You almost have to put a checkmark on that. Audi is a much weaker brand than Porsche. It can’t demand such a high price premium. Audi actually has the better case for Formula One because it has much greater potential for the brand. They are moving into the higher segments, into competition with Daimler, and then Audi will also have a case where they say that makes sense. Audi also transfers four or five billion a year to [the VW Group], and it will also transfer more with Formula One than without.”
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