{"id":33793,"date":"2024-01-09T18:27:00","date_gmt":"2024-01-09T18:27:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/formula1news.co.uk\/?p=33793"},"modified":"2024-01-09T04:57:04","modified_gmt":"2024-01-09T04:57:04","slug":"fia-make-massive-mercedes-admission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/formula1news.co.uk\/fia-make-massive-mercedes-admission\/","title":{"rendered":"FIA make massive Mercedes admission"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The FIA are keen to avoid a team having a superior power unit in 2026, when the new engine regulations are introduced. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Effectively, the governing body don’t want a repeat of what happened when the engines were last significantly changed in 2014, when the turbo-hybrid era was introduced. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mercedes entered the turbo-hybrid era with an engine so powerful that they “never” ran it on full power during qualifying, as revealed by Paddy Lowe, who was the side’s technical director at the time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

FIA head of single seaters, Nikolas Tombazis, is very much wanting to avoid a “huge controversy” in 2026 by one manufacturer having a significantly stronger power unit, which is why measures have been put in place to avoid this. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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“We obviously don’t want to start that season with huge controversy,” Tombazis told Autosport. “Last time, we had it pretty good. Since then, we have learned a bit more, and we can make sure we can avoid any kind of controversy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was Mercedes’ superior engine which really kickstarted their dominance, which only concluded in 2022 when Red Bull won the Constructors’ Championship. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Silver Arrows won the championship every year from 2014 all the way through to 2021, before their dominance ended following the introduction of the current aerodynamic regulations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 2014, Daniel Ricciardo was the only non-Mercedes driver to win a race, with the Silver Arrows having won the Constructors’ Championship by a healthy 296 points over Red Bull. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was in qualifying where Mercedes’ power unit in 2014 really stretched its legs and showed its superiority, to the point that team boss Toto Wolff wanted the Germans to turn their engine down. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Carlos #Sainz<\/a> speaks out after Max #Verstappen<\/a> poaching https:\/\/t.co\/0BfP7Q6xUv<\/a><\/p>— Formula1News.co.uk (@Formula1newsUK) January 8, 2024<\/a><\/blockquote>