Return to V8 engines, Ben Sulayem insists: “They will arrive in 2031 at the latest. But I want them already in 2030”

Return of V8 engines, it’s a matter of time Mohammed Ben Sulayem outlines the path for the future of Formula 1, and with very important declarations he reiterated his intention to bring back V8s, already protagonists from 2006 to 2013, in the next generation of engines. This is a hypothesis that has been circulating for some time, and which the FIA ​​president himself has supported in the past, but on which no other big name had exposed himself. Also favoring this scenario was the heated debate surrounding the current power units, criticized for their complexity and for the equal division between thermal and electrical components, considered by many to be too expensive (despite the elimination of the MGU-H) and heavy, not very effective and even less spectacular, to the point of forcing F1 to take action after three GPs. Precisely for this reason, Ben Sulayem hypothesizes the early end of the current power unit cycle – from 2031 to 2030 – while he is sure that in five years at the latest we will see turbo V8s powered by sustainable petrol on the track. The words of Ben Sulayem “The return of the V8 or V10 engines is coming. Ultimately, it’s only a matter of time. In 2031, the FIA will have the power to do it, without the need for any vote from the engine manufacturers. But I aim to bring it forward to 2030, something that everyone is now asking of us. When we try to tell the engine engineers, they say no (Audi and Honda are certainly opposed to it, ed.) but what has to happening will happen“, this is the comment of Ben Sulayem in Miami. “The manufacturers want it to happen, but even if they voted against introducing it in 2030, it would happen in 2031. It’s not a question of whether I need their support. It will happen, the V8s will come.” “The easiest engine to handle is the V8. It offers a nice sound, it is less complicated and it is light. You will hear about it very soon: the electrification will be very minimal, the ratio will not be like now, which is a 46-54,” he added. “You see it in road cars from Ferrari, Mercedes, Audi, Cadillac and you find it on most manufacturers, it allows you to make a lightweight car.”

Automobile Magazine – F1 English News
2026-05-03 22:50:00