FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem says the “consultation has been a lot” over Formula 1’s planned V8 return in 2030, and has outlined when he expects an agreement to be reached.
The FIA president has repeated his pledge to bring V8 engines back to F1 for much of this season, following the disastrous introduction of the 2026 power unit regulations.
Ben Sulayem said at the Miami Grand Prix that the teams were open to the idea of a V8 return, while repeating his push to get them back into the series by 2030.
The overall framework is yet to be agreed upon, though a recent report suggested the manufacturers are pushing for the new V8 formula to include turbocharging.
F1 last used V8 engines in 2013
© XPB Images
“The papers are with the team”
In a roundtable for select media, Ben Sulayem was quizzed on the new V8 formula and when a decision is expected.
“The consultation has been a lot,” he reported by Planet F1 as saying.
“The papers are with the teams. Teams are reading them. Team principals, PUMs, power unit manufacturers. A driver has been consulted about it.
“When you make it simpler, and then you make it half the price, you know, the R&D doesn’t just go down by half, but then the simplicity that comes with it means production can take less time.
2030 engines are set to be less complicated
“So, you know, there are materials also… the block is only for reliability. You go up, and then it’s the power.
“That’s where you have to limit things, because limiting the power means you have to police it so that nobody can use certain materials. Certain materials can be very expensive if you’re trying to get those last few horsepower.
“And then the sound will be there. Then a very light car, but you have to be very careful about how light you can let it be.”
He added: “Here, when I say simpler, it will definitely be simpler.
“You can go and ask an engine builder, and they will tell you how long it takes to build that type of engine.
“I mean, if they come back, they will not approve only the technical data. They will also approve the time required. They will know how much time it will take.
“And, you know, I am very proud of our team in single-seaters and the amount of work they have done. Believe me, it’s a lot of work.
“They will not give the teams something that is simply not doable. It is doable for them.
“In a few months, hopefully [an agreement will be reached].
“Of course, you push the teams and the PUMs to come back to you, and we will wait for them to come back to us.”
Lewis joined the Crash.net team in August of 2024 having been a journalist for five years covering MotoGP for the Motorsport Network. In February of 2026, he became Head of Editorial.