Red Bull’s Helmut Marko doesn’t see Mercedes dominating the next F1 era

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko believes Mercedes won't dominate the new engine regulations in 2026 as they did in 2014 when F1 went to turbo hybrid power units. The sport is gearing up for another massive regulation change in 2026 with the power unit being divided into two components: the battery and MGU-K and completely scrapping the MGU-H.

Red Bull have decided not to become a customer of any existing engine manufacturers and set up their own powertrains for the new regulations. There were initial fears regarding the decision as the Milton-Keynes outfit had never gone on this route and could find themselves lagging behind the likes of Mercedes and Ferrari.

However, speaking with GrandPrix247, Marko shot down claims that Mercedes would dominate the engine regulations as they did in 2014, while the Austrian outfit would lag behind. He said:

“I don’t think it will be a game changer like 2014, where Mercedes were 50bhp or more ahead. In the end, you really will see once see when the engines are running out on track in 2026, but so far we at Red Bull are on plan.”

Red Bull team principal Christian Horner told Autosport that they were 'hitting the targets' regarding their progress in the powertrains department, saying:

“We are hitting the targets that we're setting ourselves. Now, how those targets stack up to our competitors is always difficult to know. But the effort that's going in behind the scenes is huge because it is literally a race against the clock to the start of 2026.”

Red Bull team boss provides an update regarding the powertrains

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner noted that the powertrains facilities were set up completely but pointed out that two years wasn't enough time for them to get on top of the division.

He told Autosport in April:

“With the engine, we're on an aggressive curve being a brand new power unit manufacturer but the team is really rising to that challenge. Our facilities are complete, both from a test and development point of view with dynos and rig rooms, etc, and manufacturing capability.

“But two years in the engine world is a very small period of time. We're on a steep learning curve, but we're on that curve and where we would expect to be on that curve at this point in time.”

Max Verstappen too claimed that he was in 'close contact with Horner' regarding the progress of the powertrains division. The world champions would be supplying the power units to their sister team Visa Cash RB as well with some recent reports suggesting that McLaren too might become a customer and jump ship from Mercedes.