Mercedes holding out as F1 moves step closer to in-season engine changes

F1 has moved a step closer to allowing in-season engine upgrades next season, although it requires a change of heart from pacesetters Mercedes for the change to be made.

At a meeting in Sochi, the sport’s Strategy Group, which comprises the top six teams plus the FIA and commercial rights controller Bernie Ecclestone, voted by majority to allow in-season developments.

It’s understood that Mercedes, Williams and Lotus – who switch engine supplier from Renault in 2015 – voted against the proposal, even though the German manufacturer had previously said it was open to the idea.

However, the proposal now needs to be passed by the F1 Commission, which requires a unanimous vote and with Mercedes also sitting on that body, it means they’ll have to be persuaded to change their minds for it to come into effect. 

Speaking on Friday, Red Bull team boss Christian Horner said: “In Singapore, the teams unanimously agreed on a position. And then, I think, subsequently from that meeting, Mercedes changed their position.

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“We’ve subsequently had a strategy meeting and it’s been voted on a majority basis for that to go through to the Formula 1 Commission for in-season upgrades to be allowed.

“We’ll see what the outcome of the Formula 1 Commission vote is. The FIA are in support, FOM are in support; obviously the non-Mercedes teams are in support. So we’ll see what that holds in approximately a month’s time.”

Like Renault-powered Red Bull, Ferrari have struggled in Mercedes’ wake this season with an underpowered engine.

As the rules stand, engine manufacturers can make changes year-on-year, although at present the work can also be done out of season and then homologated.

The magnitude of changes allowed tapers off through to 2020, although they are allowed for reliability, safety or cost-saving reasons.

“Frozen engines: this is not Formula 1, I agree with Christian,” Ferrari team boss Marco Mattiacci said on Friday. “Now we’ve had the majority of the vote to go ahead and unfreeze the engine, let’s see what’s going to happen with the F1 Commission.”

However, Mercedes team boss Toto Wolff said that F1’s technical rules, which have recently undergone a big shake-up with the arrival of hybrid power, need “stability”.

“This is not because of my own agenda, because we have the best engine and we want to immobilise or freeze the situation,” he told adamcooperf1.com.

“We have rules, the rules have been written down, some clever people thought about the rules. If we want to change them, let’s discuss them, let’s follow them, let’s follow the governance, and let’s see if it make sense or not. And we are the first ones to follow intelligent ideas.”

The 2014 Russian GP is live on Sky Sports F1 this weekend. Extensive coverage of Race Day from Sochi begins at 10:30am on Sunday with lights out at 12pm.