Mercedes reveal F1 car for new 2026 rules

In the new rules era of the sport, Mercedes have revealed the vehicle they hope will take to the top.

With eight consecutive constructors’ titles and seven consecutive drivers’ championships in a row, they became the most dominant team in history between 2014 and 2019.

They hope the reset will help them because they fell from their pedestal during the final rules set for 2022 to 2025.

With the introduction of new chassis and engine regulations, the team has a year that many people consider to be favorites. Both Kimi Antonelli and Briton George Russell are still the only drivers to win a race outside of the title-contending McLaren and Red Bull teams.

Although the rules call for measuring at ambient temperature, this is set at 16: 1. The teams and the FIA will hold a meeting on Thursday to discuss concerns that Mercedes and Red Bull may have discovered ways to increase power output by increasing the compression ratio at higher temperatures.

Ben Hodgkinson, the head of Red Bull engine, stated last week that “any engineer who doesn’t understand thermal expansion doesn’t belong in this sport, really doesn’t deserve to be an engineer.” Our job is essentially to understand how materials behave under various temperatures, pressures, stresses, and loads.

With new cars, engines, and tyres and the requirement for fully sustainable fuel, the new Mercedes W17 was created to maximize what is widely regarded as the biggest regulation change in history.

Before it is scheduled to start on track for the first time later in the day at Silverstone, digital images of the vehicle were released on Thursday.

Mercedes will also travel to the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya’s first pre-season test, which will be held behind closed doors with no access to independent media the following week. On the test’s maximum three of the five days, teams are permitted to run.

Toto Wolff, the Mercedes team’s principal, stated: “Formula 1 will change significantly in 2026, and we are prepared for that change.”