Munich, Dusseldorf Audi and Porsche will be allowed to participate independently in Formula 1 in the future. The Supervisory Board of the Volkswagen Group made this fundamental decision on Thursday. However, that does not mean that the entry of the two VW subsidiaries into the premier class has already been decided. The decision of the supervisory board simply means that Audi and Porsche now have a free hand for further negotiations.
“The board of directors and supervisory board of Volkswagen AG, Porsche AG and Audi AG have confirmed the plans of the two group brands for a possible entry into Formula 1,” said a group spokesman in the early evening. Audi and Porsche would provide details at a later date.
Porsche is already negotiating with the Austro-British Red Bull racing team about entry into Formula 1. A final decision is not expected until early summer at the earliest. “First the future engine regulations must be finally clarified,” says the Porsche headquarters in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. If the planned hybrid drives and the additional use of synthetic fuels remain, there could also be an agreement with Red Bull.
Under the currently valid engine regulations with pure combustion engines, entry into Formula 1 is considered unthinkable for both Porsche and Audi. With the comprehensive switch to electromobility, the entire Volkswagen Group has given itself a green coat of paint. “Pure combustion engines would be a step into the past,” said a Porsche manager. The same applies to Audi.
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Although they are at home in the same car company, Audi and Porsche want to compete in Formula 1 with their own engines. “That’s no different in the premier class of racing,” said corporate circles.
There has to be a minimum level of competition in Formula 1, even if Audi and Porsche both belong to Volkswagen. That ultimately leads to different engine concepts. Due to the long preparation time, Audi and Porsche could take part in Formula 1 races for the first time in 2026.
Plans not undisputed
Within the VW Group, Audi’s and Porsche’s Formula 1 plans are not entirely undisputed. Above all, both brands have to prove that entering the racing class does not become a subsidy business. “That’s why we will definitely have to fight for victory in the future,” said the unanimous message in Stuttgart and Munich. Only then is the advertising and marketing effect large enough to be able to benefit from the large financial outlay. Both brands will each have to invest a mid three-digit million amount to enter Formula 1.
Audi had been pursuing plans to enter Formula 1 for some time. Audi boss Markus Duesmann started his career in the Mercedes and BMW racing teams. So far, the Ingolstadt-based company has mainly been involved in the long-distance races at Le Mans and in the Formula E electric series. But for the racing fan Duesmann, Formula 1 is still the measure of all things – especially when the premier class of racing starts in 2026 should put synthetic fuels. Porsche sees itself as a motorsport company, and Formula 1 fits in well with that.
To get started, Audi wants to take over one of the established racing teams. According to corporate circles, talks are underway with McLaren. If it were to enter the Ingolstadt-based company, it would also take over McLaren’s sports car division and run it as a further group brand alongside Lamborghini. But the traditional team Williams and the Swiss racing team Sauber are still in the running, Aston Martin was also named as a possible Audi partner by industry circles. Officially, Audi did not want to comment on the information.
>>Read here: Just as Porsche is also pursuing a very independent course in other areas.
In a conversation with the Handelsblatt newspaper last year, the CEO of Volkswagen, Herbert Diess, was in principle in favor of involvement in Formula 1. “Motorsport serves the brands, which can use it to boost their image in a sporty way, that’s where the innovations come from. In our group, Porsche and Audi are at the top,” said Diess.
“If one of the brands can imagine that and the business case is right, why not?” he added. However, you would need a technological change in Formula 1 towards synthetic fuels and will “definitely not enter the current racing series”.
Investors cautious
The Formula 1 entry is evaluated with a certain reluctance in investor circles and on the stock exchange. According to Patrick Hummel, automotive analyst at the major Swiss bank UBS, Mercedes has managed to charge its own brand with its commitment to Formula 1 in recent years. “However, we are now skeptical about the planned entry because the entire Volkswagen Group has committed itself to a clear electric strategy, especially the premium brands Audi and Porsche,” said Hummel.
He is pointing out that the future Formula 1 engine regulations will most likely not be about purely electric drives, but about hybrid concepts with the addition of synthetic fuels.
Porsche has reserved the right to use synthetic fuels to a certain extent in addition to the electric drive. Porsche is therefore building a pilot plant in southern Chile together with partners from the energy sector.
The synthetic fuels produced there in the future are to be used for the existing fleet of 911 models and in motorsport. Porsche only announced on Wednesday that it wanted to invest a further 75 million US dollars in the project.
More: E-Fuels from Chile: How Porsche wants to save the 911.