McLaren's Boullier: Mercedes will listen to F1 engine rule pleas
McLaren racing director Eric Boullier is hoping Mercedes will be flexible when it comes to negotiations over the unfreezing of next year's Formula 1 engine regulations

Ferrari, Renault and McLaren's power unit supplier Honda are all eager for the rules to be relaxed for next year to at least allow them the opportunity to make gains on all-conquering Mercedes.
At present, after the FIA closed a loophole in the wording of the regulation, no in-season development of the power unit is allowed beyond February 28 2016.
For the FIA to open up the rule, Mercedes will have to join forces with its three rivals to make a case to technical delegate Charlie Whiting.
Boullier believes early signs are positive after discussing the matter with Mercedes motorsport boss Toto Wolff and non-executive chairman Niki Lauda.
"It's all about negotiating," added Boullier.
"They are willing to listen, to be honest. They are already, and having talked to Toto and Niki they are concerned about Formula 1 itself.
"I'm sure there is some room for change.
"You just need to look at the whole picture."
With Honda needing as much assistance as it can get, Boullier added: "We've always been open to development. Definitely.
"The position is clear. We want to have as much room as possible because F1 has become an engine formula, and it's too much now.
"Looking at the situation, with the chassis you can develop that when you want; engine, you are locked into a situation and now engine manufacturers cannot recover or compete fairly, let's say.
"Of course, the regulation is the same for everybody, and everybody knew the regulation beforehand, but there needs to be a degree of flexibility for that. It needs to be changed.
"We cornered ourselves in Formula 1 with this regulation, but now we need to be clever to rethink how to change it."

Not up to Mercedes to make Formula 1 exciting - Niki Lauda
Red Bull's Horner says one-stop grands prix bad for Formula 1

Latest news
Cosworth: F1 return not on radar despite Ford's comeback
Cosworth is not considering a future return to Formula 1 despite former partner Ford’s comeback with Red Bull in 2026, saying it “hasn’t been a focus.”
Ekstrom joins World RX as sporting director for 2023 season
One-time World RallyCross Championship title-winner Mattias Ekstrom will join the series promoter as sporting director ahead of its second season of its full-electric regulations.
FIA president Ben Sulayem steps back from day-to-day F1 operations
The FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has stepped back from the day-to-day running of Formula 1 ahead of the new season.
Why the Hyderabad E-Prix is only a first step in India's motorsport emergence
OPINION: Motor racing still has some way to go to usurp cricket as India's favourite sporting discipline. The long-awaited return of international motorsport to the country this weekend with the Hyderabad E-Prix is an important step in the right direction, but it will take more than Formula E's arrival to cause a true shift
Why Albon won't be "throwing around laptops" to gain a 2023 F1 edge
OPINION: At the Williams 2023 Formula 1 season launch, Alex Albon’s easy-going nature was again a point of focus. But does being “too nice” really matter in modern F1? Albon’s own expressions put that in an intriguing new light
How the last Sauber-built Alfa offers F1 2023 evolution clues
Alfa Romeo has become the first Formula 1 team to reveal a new car for 2023, in addition to a fresh livery. This offered a first look at some of the understated changes produced by the revised regulations, along with points of convergence in the second year of the ground effect rules
The pioneering F1 car that preceded Lotus’s terminal decline
In the hands of Ayrton Senna the actively suspended 99T would be the last F1 race-winning Lotus but, as STUART CODLING reveals, it was a complicated machine that caused more problems than it solved
How Tyrrell became a racing Rubik’s cube as it faded out of F1
Formula 1’s transformation into a global sport meant the gradual extinction for a small team determined to stay true to its low-budget roots. But Tyrrell would eventually be reborn as a world-beating outfit again, explains MAURICE HAMILTON, albeit in different colours…
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.