Verstappen and Sainz urge FIA “to be tough”, but F1 manufacturers must look in the mirror

While Montreal produced entertaining racing on track, the paddock was dominated by one topic in particular: 2027. Ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, the FIA announced that there is an agreement in principle to alter the split between the internal combustion engine and electrical power to 60-40, with the aim of making the combustion engine more prominent again.

As the weekend progressed, it became clear that the words “in principle” were doing a lot of the heavy lifting in that statement. As is so often the case in F1, the political reality proved far more complicated than it initially appeared.

That also became clear to Max Verstappen, who spoke positively about the proposed direction on Thursday and said it would “definitely help” to keep him in Formula 1 next year. Once he realised how complicated matters behind the scenes actually are, Verstappen warned that it would be “mentally not doable” for him to continue if the changes were ultimately blocked by political games.

The fact that the race in Montreal – just like the one in Miami – felt more natural than the grands prix before the April break changes nothing in that regard. Verstappen argued that the entertainment value is not a credit to the regulations and that F1 drivers could still put on a show even in rental cars.

The Dutchman received support from many other drivers in the media pen. When asked by Autosport, several explained that despite the visual improvements for fans, the underlying problems from the cockpit remain unchanged.

“Sometimes it's really easy to overtake a car, but then you get overtaken straight back on the next straight. It’s still hard to kind of get that rhythm where you feel like you're really racing,” said Alex Albon.

“It's almost like sometimes the differences in speed [are so big] that you kind of don't even want to defend because it almost feels dangerous to start moving around down the straight. So you kind of just stay in one position and let the other car get you back.”

The FIA is proposing engine changes for 2027, but some manufacturers are not in favour

Photo by: Guido De Bortoli / LAT Images via Getty Images

It means that almost all drivers seem to agree that more changes are needed to make the racing feel more natural again – starting with the 60-40 split for 2027.

What Sainz really meant by his appeal to the FIA

Once it became clear that this issue is heavily political, Verstappen and Carlos Sainz were among those urging the FIA “to be tough”. That is easier said than done, however. The FIA was able to do so with the revised start procedure, where it could push through changes on safety grounds.

The potential 2027 changes though do not appear to be a direct safety issue, even if drivers continue to argue that the closing speeds remain too extreme. But if the FIA cannot play the safety card, then the governing body appears limited in what it can do to force through changes.

“Obviously, everyone needs to agree. But at the same time, if it's for the good of the sport, for the good of the racing and the show, I'm a big fan of the rulers taking a very strong approach and strong stance on it" Carlos Sainz

In that case, it primarily comes down to securing a supermajority among the power unit manufacturers, requiring support from four out of six parties. Readers may wonder why there are six manufacturers when there are currently only five different power units, but that is because General Motors (Cadillac) has officially signed up and therefore also has voting rights.

When Autosport asked Sainz what he exactly meant by telling the FIA “to be tough” if the governing body cannot intervene on safety grounds, he clarified: “I know. I know it is actually [difficult]. When I said that, thinking about it, I think there's a commission where you can vote and the teams have a vote. I guess that's where I was saying to the FIA and FOM to push it through and stay committed to it.

“Because if they say it should be like that, I'm pretty sure teams that are complaining or maybe not fully aligned with them, they will have no other choice than to do it. Obviously, everyone needs to agree. But at the same time, if it's for the good of the sport, for the good of the racing and the show, I'm a big fan of the rulers taking a very strong approach and strong stance on it.”

Sainz, like Verstappen, is a big critic of the 2026 regulations

Photo by: Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images

Ultimately, it still comes down to gathering the required support, but Sainz would at least like to see the FIA take a clear stance ahead of the vote and explain to opposing manufacturers why the changes are necessary.

Why Ferrari could give the FIA a headache

Although that is a valid point, several manufacturers also need to look in the mirror. To begin with, it is important to acknowledge that political interests exist on all sides – including among those supporting the changes.

Red Bull and Mercedes are both in favour, but that is hardly surprising. As a company, Red Bull naturally has less interest in electrification than some others and it also employs Verstappen, the most outspoken driver on this subject.

Mercedes says it is acting in the best interests of the series and is potentially willing to give up an advantage – considering the manufacturer is currently leading – but changing the engine regulations for 2027 could also create development opportunities for the German marque that otherwise would not exist.

Mercedes does not appear to qualify for ADUO, meaning that under stable regulations only its rivals would receive development opportunities while the Silver Arrows would not. Changes to the rules may therefore not be such bad news after all.

That immediately brings us to one of the manufacturers that has consistently opposed the changes so far: Ferrari. According to the FIA, the Scuderia is particularly focused on ADUO and has therefore tried to steer all discussions behind the scenes in that direction.

The Italian manufacturer is concerned that potential changes for next year could affect the ADUO system, which is currently Ferrari's main focus. Besides that, the team stresses that the same people responsible for implementing ADUO upgrades would also have to absorb any potential 2027 rule changes.

Ferrari is opposed to the 2027 regulation tweak

Photo by: Guido De Bortoli / LAT Images via Getty Images

Although it is understandable to a certain extent that Ferrari is looking at its own competitive position – wanting development opportunities for itself while preferring Mercedes not to have them – the Scuderia also needs to look in the mirror.

Both Ferrari drivers have once again made clear in recent weeks that the current regulations are not what they should be. Charles Leclerc has repeatedly spoken about qualifying sessions where drivers were effectively punished for pushing harder, while Lewis Hamilton said this on Sunday evening: “It’s definitely not second nature, that’s for sure. I think it still continues to be a weird feeling. You go down the power, you open up the SM, and then the power dies like halfway down the straight and the RPM starts dropping. It doesn’t feel what motorsport should be. The engine should be ringing its neck off right to the end of the straight and just pulling and pulling.”

If Ferrari takes the concerns of drivers, including its own, seriously and genuinely wants to act in the interests of the championship, then it should think about its position ahead of Tuesday’s F1 Commission meeting. But this is a classic example of conflicting interests: the competitive interest versus the interests of F1, despite everybody in the paddock always claiming to prioritise the latter.

Can the financial concerns of Audi and Honda be solved?

The second concern is financial in nature. Audi and Honda are worried about additional investments that may be required. On the chassis side, that concern appears solvable. Multiple teams want to carry over this year’s chassis into next season, and team bosses confirmed on Friday that a plan is already on the table: shortening several races by a few laps and limiting the laps to the grid to one per driver.

“I don’t think the amount of investment is relevant compared to the size of the sport. So I think, let me put it this way, we should fix it once for all and not have this as a recurring topic" Laurent Mekies

But on the power unit side the situation is more complicated. If adjustments to fuel flow are required, then hardware changes to the engines will also be necessary – for example because increasing fuel flow would have consequences for reliability.

Those changes cost money, something Audi is not keen on, partly because the brand from Ingolstadt may then have to talk to the wider Volkswagen Group again. The manufacturer with the four rings argues that so much has already been invested into the current power units that new investments just one year later are far from desirable.

Red Bull team boss Laurent Mekies responded that such investments are insignificant if they improve F1 as a whole.

Laurent Mekies, Red Bull Racing Team Principal

Photo by: Mark Thompson / Getty Images

“I don’t think the amount of investment is relevant compared to the size of the sport," he said. "So I think, let me put it this way, we should fix it once for all and not have this as a recurring topic.”

Heading into Tuesday, the key question is whether either of those concerns can be addressed. If Ferrari, Audi and Honda remain opposed for different reasons, then reaching an agreement quickly could become difficult – or a weaker compromise than the proposed 60-40 split may ultimately emerge, something the drivers would once again be unhappy with.

But if one of the two concerns can be resolved – for example through a financial framework – then the plan already made public in that FIA statement may still have a realistic chance of succeeding.

Once again: political interests play a crucial role on all sides, among both supporters and opponents alike, and that has always been part of the series. But if the drivers collectively believe these changes are necessary to make F1 feel more natural again, then some manufacturers may need to reflect carefully ahead of next week’s meeting.

This is all set to be discussed in an F1 Commission meeting on Tuesday

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / LAT Images via Getty Images