Binotto: It's bad when the discussion becomes political.

      On Monday, an important meeting at the level of the Formula 1 Commission will take place, where issues regarding possible adjustments to the regulations will be discussed. For the factory team Audi, although created based on Sauber, the 2026 season is a debut, and as a manufacturer of power units for Formula 1, it is a complete newcomer. At the same time, Mattia Binotto, the head of Audi's program in the World Championship, assures that they are open to proposals aimed at changing the 50/50 energy generation ratio between the internal combustion engine and the hybrid system. There is a possibility that today the participants of the F1 Commission will be able to agree on measures to rectify the ambiguous situation that arose at the beginning of the season due to the imperfections of the regulations. However, it is unlikely that the meeting will take place in an atmosphere of unanimity; for example, the Mercedes team is expected to oppose the proposed changes, as this would deprive them of the advantage they demonstrate in the early races precisely due to the effective power unit. Ferrari handles starts better than its competitors, so the representatives of Scuderia surely have their own special opinion as well. One of the most obvious proposed measures involves changing the aforementioned ratio in energy generation in favor of the internal combustion engine, while the power of electric systems should be reduced. Here’s what Binotto said in this context in an interview with The Race: “I think when the decision was made about the 50/50 ratio, Audi was not involved in that. The decision was made earlier. Certainly, Audi decided to enter the championship to create highly efficient engines, environmentally friendly fuels, to enhance the role of electrification, as well as to abandon the use of MGU-H motor-generators. Audi believed that the knowledge and experience accumulated by previous manufacturers in this area would give them an advantage. But Audi was not involved in the discussion about the 50/50 ratio. I believe it would be bad if the discussion takes on a political hue, as everyone is interested in making Formula 1 as good as possible. In certain situations, we need to understand that we are all participants in a huge business, so we must do everything to keep it successful. In general, those who translate the discussion into a political plane are acting incorrectly. We must act together, making every effort for improvements. I agree that the decisions made may affect some teams more than others. But that is also part of the task we are currently addressing.”