Audi will enter Formula 1 as an engine supplier.

The German car manufacturer Audi will make its debut in Formula 1 in 2026 as an engine supplier, announced its CEO, Markus Duesmann, at a press conference in Spa-Francorchamps, on the sidelines of the Belgium Grand Prix.

Audi will develop its hybrid engine in Neuburg an der Donau, in Bavaria, southern Germany, and will partner with an F1 team "to be announced by the end of the year," explained Duesmann.

According to specialized press, this alliance could be closed with Sauber, which currently competes as Alfa Romeo and uses Ferrari engines. Audi thus joins Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault, and Red Bull (with Honda technology) as an engine manufacturer.

This announcement comes ten days after the approval by the World Motor Sport Council of the FIA of regulations on new engines from 2026 onwards.

"It is perfect timing with the new regulations: F1 is changing in a way that allows us to incorporate a very important part of electricity" into the hybrid engine, Duesmann explained, present in Belgium alongside Stefano Domenicali, the head of Formula 1, and Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President of the International Automobile Federation (FIA).

Engines, hybrid since 2014, will have an increase in electric power from 2026 and will use 100% sustainable fuels, a requirement for the German brand.

Audi, like the rest of the Volkswagen group, is committed to a shift towards electric technology and wants to take advantage of the F1 platform to showcase its "greener" advancements and ambitions.

The possibility of building a team from scratch has been rejected, and everything seems to indicate that, either through collaboration or acquisition, Audi's most likely entry point into F1 would be through the Swiss Sauber structure, which currently runs as Alfa Romeo.

After Audi's announcement, Porsche should soon announce its entry into the elite of motor sports. Although both brands belong to the Volkswagen group, Duesmann clarifies that they would be "two completely different programs," with Audi's structure in Germany and Porsche's hypothetical base in the United Kingdom.

This clarification opens the door to a possible collaboration between Porsche and Red Bull, through the purchase of 50% of the Austrian team.

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