The brand with the four rings has once again shown its commitment to the premier category of motorsport in the Spanish capital, in which it will participate in four seasons with a self-developed hybrid engine, taking advantage of the new regulation changes set for 2026 and 2030 .
Audi Sport has presented its F1 project for the year 2026 in Madrid, with which they hope to be competitive “in three years”, as recognized by the CEO of the Audi Formula Racing GmbH division and director of the initiative, Adam Baker, when responding to questions from the reference media, including AUTO BILD.ES.
In an event organized by Audi Spain very close to the Madrid Jarama Race Circuit, the German firm reviewed its 90 years in competition, from the successes achieved in the 1930s with the ‘silver arrows’, passing through its WRC titles in the 80s, the DTM from the 90s to today, the victories in Endurance and Le Mans already in the 21st century… until its entry into Formula E and Formula One.
Next, together with a car based on the current single-seaters, but with the decoration that the team would wear today if it started in the World Championship, those responsible for the brand in Spain and Baker himself have highlighted that “Formula 1 fits perfectly into the Audi’s philosophy in terms of efficiency, batteries, electrification”…
…And of course, regarding the “transfer of knowledge regarding technological and racing solutions (F1 2026 will use biofuels and power units with greater electrification) and production cars”, they have agreed on Emphasize Baker himself, José Miguel Aparicio -general director of Audi Spain- and Ignacio González -general director of the firm in our country.
As for the following deadlines that Audi gives itself in this project, everyone has wanted to be cautious because it is “at the beginning” of a project that will focus on the development of the engine from now on and that will have to look for chassis so that the “commitment of the powertrain and aerodynamics are perfectly matched and ready for the 2025 tests and the 2026 season.”
This has been pointed out by Baker, who did not want to offer more details about the structure of the future squad or its possible synergies with Porsche or Volkswagen. Nor about his favorite drivers, despite the interest of the press about the role of Allan McNish (of whom he has said that he has been counted on from the beginning for the development of the squad), Carlos Sainz or Fernando Alonso.
For the CEO of Audi Formula Racing, having Carlos “would be something fantastic, like others”, but he insisted throughout the act that it is still early, that nothing has been decided and that it remains to be seen, even if are associated with an existing F1 team or if they would also take care of the chassis, to consolidate a structure “of 130 people” who are expected to reach “300”.
