Verstappen agrees with FIA president on V10s returning to F1 - but negotiations must be private

Max Verstappen has agreed with the FIA president that V10 engines should return to Formula 1, but believes the negotiations must be held behind closed doors.

In February, Mohammed Ben Sulayem stated on social media that he would love to see F1 consider switching back to V10s and that the power unit should be run on sustainable fuels.

The engine configuration has not been in F1 since 2005 and, although its return would be widely popular among fans, Verstappen disapproves of the president making his comments in public.

“Of course I think it's a very nice idea,” the four-time world champion said, when asked about the idea by Motorsport.com. “But whether it's possible or not, that's obviously a completely different story.

“I always think it's better to not just shout so many things. It's better to try to solve things behind the scenes - that would be better for everyone.”

Mohammed Ben Sulayem, President, FIA, congratulates Max Verstappen, Red Bull Racing, 3rd position, in Parc Ferme

Photo by: Sam Bloxham / Motorsport Images

Ben Sulayem made his comments in the wake of F175, the season launch event where each team revealed its new-for-2025 livery in front of a live audience in London.

The FIA president stated that it "triggered a lot of positive discussions on the future of the sport", prompting him to contemplate the return of V10s for the next set of engine regulations beyond the one coming in 2026.

"While we look forward to the introduction of the 2026 regulations on chassis and power unit, we must also lead the way on future technological motorsport trends," Ben Sulayem added.

"We should consider a range of directions including the roaring sound of the V10 running on sustainable fuel. Whichever direction is chosen, we must support the teams and manufacturers in ensuring cost control on R&D expenditure."

The technical regulations are being overhauled for the 2026 F1 season, with cars being powered by a V6 hybrid running on fully synthetic fuel, which will make its series debut.

This drew more engine manufacturers into the championship, as Audi is debuting as a works team in 2026 while Cadillac is initially joining as a Ferrari customer outfit with the intention of developing its own power unit for 2028.

Next year also marks a new era for Red Bull, which will form a technical partnership with Ford and Christian Horner agreed with Ben Sulayem that F1 should consider the possibility of V10s returning.

Verstappen was also asked about the FIA's recent clampdown on swearing amid suggestions that he could start swearing in his local Limburgian dialect.

"I used to do that plenty of times during karting anyway!" said Verstappen. "But yeah, these things are just very silly. You don't even want to deal with things like that, but it is what it is."