FIA confirms F1 door still open for Porsche

Formula 1 has left the door open to Porsche, despite a deadline for manufacturers to sign up for the new engine rules in 2026 having now passed.

We reported earlier this month that, following the collapse of the Red Bull-Porsche talks, the VW-owned German carmaker only had days to follow Audi into the sport before the FIA’s October 15 deadline.

Porsche CFO Lutz Meschke said before the deadline expired: "Formula 1 remains an interesting racing series for us.

"We’re looking to see if there are any other viable options," he told Sport1. But we are not allowing ourselves to be pressured into making a decision that we are not convinced of."

Indeed, we also clarified before the deadline expired that the FIA may have told Porsche that the deadline may have some flexibility built into it.

FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem has now confirmed that.

"At Spa-Francorchamps in August, Audi announced it was joining the FIA Formula 1 World Championship from 2026 as a power unit manufacturer," he said in a statement after the World Motor Sport Council meeting this week.

"This announcement was an endorsement of the hard work by all stakeholders to develop those regulations. We also note that Porsche are still in discussions with Formula 1 teams."