Horner: FIA president taking Red Bull’s '26 rule concerns ‘very seriously’

In recent weeks, Horner and reigning world champion Max Verstappen have been vocal in their scepticism of the 2026 technical rules.

2026 will see the introduction of a new power unit which will run on sustainable fuels.

Verstappen launched a scathing attack on the “terrible” rules after seeing how they are expected to work in various simulations.

Speaking after second practice for the British Grand Prix, Horner believes the new ruleset needs a tweak, confirming that the FIA are looking into Red Bull’s feedback.

“I think the more that we are looking at these regs, the more simulations, the more advanced those simulations are and we are still two and a half years away from the introduction so for me it would be a bit foolhardy not explore those and if there is a tune-up we can do to tune the ratio to ensure that we haven’t got cars that can’t race or we’ve got engines that are just effective to charge batteries,” he said. 

“I think with a very slight tweak we can get it right because there are only certain circuits it’s going to be a major factor at. 

“I think for the benefit of the sport and I think the FIA actually are taking it very seriously. The president has asked the technical team to look at some of the data - it is important we don’t get it wrong for ‘26 because we’ve got a golden opportunity.”

Ahead of this weekend, Verstappen admitted he was very pleased with how Red Bull’s maiden engine project was progressing despite his previous criticism of the regulations.

“I think it’s a very interesting project and for me it’s also very important to know what’s going on also for my future within the team,” he explained.

“It’s all looking very promising. Of course, to go up against all these manufacturers is going to be very tough, but the signs are good, but now we have to try and deliver.

“I think we started at the right time, we are ahead of schedule but in [another] way ’26 is just around the corner.

“A lot of things still need to be done but I think we are on a good track, but because we have to keep on pushing flat out to be able to deliver a very strong engine.”