Power unit case, Red Bull stings: “Rumors that Mercedes is circulating to hide competitiveness problems”

The controversies linked to the power unit which will debut in 2026 continue to hold sway. If it is true that an important clarification meeting will be held between engine engineers and the FIA ​​in a few days, it is equally a fact that the tests are now very close. Any decision on the trick that would allow the Mercedes power units to play with the hot and cold compression ratio, if its existence is confirmed, will also impact the start of the championship. The opponents (Ferrari, Audi and Honda in the lead) have raised the alarm, sending a letter to the FIA, asking for clarity and prompt intervention. The fifth engine manufacturer – Red Bull Ford – is in a neutral position and wants to avoid bitter political battles which were normal with Christian Horner. Right from Milton Keynes comes a different reading on the power unit case: the technical director of Red Bull Powertrains Ben Hodgkinson, also a former prominent Mercedes engine engineer, believes that the rumors about the Brixworth power units originated precisely from his old team. Hodgkinson’s words “I think that most of these rumors were spread by Mercedes themselves. My grandmother always said: ‘It’s the empty can that makes the loudest’. They spread many of the rumors, probably because the driver market is really difficult and they wanted to try to attract people to a car that isn’t achieving good results at the moment”, these are Hodgkinson’s words. “We need to consider the political positioning that everyone has to take. And then, obviously, if a rumor is repeated often enough, it starts to be believed as fact, so people start looking for reasons to justify it. I just want to focus on the work and move forward, let the results do the talking.”