Red Bull 'switch sides' in FIA engine controversy

Red Bull have reportedly completed a U-turn over whose side they are on amid ongoing FIA controversy surrounding a supposed loophole in the F1 2026 regulations.

The opening round of the 2026 F1 championship gets underway in less than a month and official pre-season testing is set to take place in Bahrain over the coming weeks, following on from last month's Barcelona shakedown.

Mercedes reportedly proved themselves to have one of the most reliable power units of the new regulations cycle at the private testing event in January, and are said to have completed 500 laps with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli.

But as rumours swirl over the Silver Arrows being the ones to watch, there is drama unfolding in the background over an alleged loophole that Toto Wolff's team are said to have found.

Mercedes are under pressure from the FIA and a handful of rival F1 teams, after they are believed to have found a way to gain a major power advantage thanks to achieving a higher compression ratio, something their rivals have seemingly failed to replicate.

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Have Mercedes found 2026 power unit 'loophole'

The 2026 engine controversy revolves around the compression ratio of the internal combustion engine, which was previously 18:1, but has been reduced to 16:1 in line with the new regulations.

As things stand, the compression ratio is only measured during static tests and both Mercedes and Red Bull were previously reported to have complied with the new ratio under these conditions.

But the controversy stemmed from reports that while running at higher temperatures, both teams had allegedly found a way to achieve a higher ratio, closer to that which was permitted in the previous regulations, something which reportedly led to a benefit of up to 0.3 seconds over a single lap.

This prompted F1's governing body, the FIA, to hold a meeting to discuss future ways of testing the compression ratio under higher temperatures, with another meeting taking place earlier this week all the F1 manufacturers, known as the Power Unit Advisor Committee (PUAC).

Red Bull 'join rivals' to rally against Mercedes

Following this week's meeting of the PUAC, Italian publication Autoracer.it have reported that proposals have been drafted for the FIA to evaluate regarding the Mercedes power unit.

While Mercedes F1 boss Wolff maintained during the team's 2026 season launch that their engine remains legal, the above report claimed this week's meeting gave off the impression that the current regulations could still be tweaked, with modifications to the control systems and a partial hot check still on the cards.

Following the concerns about Mercedes' engine which were raised to the FIA in the form of a joint letter, penned by Ferrari, Audi and Honda (Aston Martin's engine provider), Autoracer also revealed that Red Bull have now reportedly switched sides to join their rivals in complaining about the Silver Arrows.

According to AutoRacer, "Red Bull has also become more actively involved in this battle after previously taking a more neutral stance", although they never passionately sided with Mercedes, instead taking the silent approach in the past.

As Red Bull appear to have changed their approach on the matter, Mercedes' rivals now await an update once again from the FIA, who will review the proposal from this week's PUAC meeting.

When does the 2026 F1 season start?

All 11 F1 teams will be in action when the 2026 season starts in Melbourne for the Australian Grand Prix. The first race of the year takes place on March 8 at 3pm local time (AEDT), 4am GMT, and 11pm ET. The first round of pre-season tests in Bahrain will kick off before then on February 11 until 13, and the second round continues from February 18 until February 20.

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