F1 News: 2026 Power Units – An insight into collaborative innovation
Episode two of the PETRONAS ‘Road to 2026’ technical content series explores the biggest technical shift in 2026 Power Unit design since the hybrid era began.
As F1 prepares for its next major regulatory evolution, episode two of the ‘Road to 2026’ series dives into the transformative changes coming to the Power Unit (PU). This episode highlights the collaborative innovation between the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team and PETRONAS, as they tackle the challenge of redefining the Power Unit with a new generation of sustainable fuels and electrified power.
Senior figures from the team and PETRONAS offer their insights into the evolution of their technical collaboration, and how they are engineering the next generation of Power Units for the 2026 F1 season.
The episode features exclusive insights from with:
- Hywel Thomas, Managing Director – Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains
- Chandramalar Muthiah, Head of Trackside Fluid Technology Solutions – PETRONAS
- Andrea Dolfi, Principal Fluid Engineer – PETRONAS
- Chan Ming Yau, Head of Fuel Technology – PETRONAS
With the removal of the MGU-H and a dramatic increase in electrical output, the 2026 PU will shift from an 80:20 ICE-to-electric ratio to a near 50:50 split. The MGU-K will be scaled up from 120kW to 350kW, demanding new levels of energy recovery and battery efficiency. To combat the new demands, PETRONAS is developing advanced fluids and coolants to support this evolution, designed to manage increased thermal loads and electrical demands.