Porsche admits it is “thinking about F1”

Porsche admits it is “thinking about F1”

The new head of Porsche Motorsport admits that the German manufacturer is “considering” getting into Formula 1, but admits that electrification and more series parts will be the key to the final decision.

There has always been talk of a return from Porsche to Formula 1. The legendary German manufacturer first entered the sport in 1961 with its F2 car and returned a year later with the purpose-built 804, which in the hands of Dan Gurney gave the company its only F1 win as a designer.

In the early 1980s, Porsche returned to sport, this time as an engine partner to McLaren, which led the Woking team to successive designer titles in 1984 and 1985, as well as driver titles for Niki Lauda (1984) and Alain Prost (1985 and 1986).

But similar to the nightmare that haunted Honda’s initial return to F1 with McLaren in 2015, Porsche’s 1991 return to F1 was a disaster F1 never seems to return.

In the years that followed there was much talk of a return, but at the beginning of 2015, Porsche Head of Development Wolfgang Hatz ruled out a return and claimed that Le Mans was more attractive.

A little more than two years later, there seemed to be a change of heart when it became known that Porsche, along with Cosworth and Aston Martin, had attended a meeting of the Power Unit Working Group and was only a few weeks away from deciding whether? to return to F1.

Two months later, after Porsche announced the end of its LMP1 program, Porsche confirmed its foray into Formula E while Deputy Chairman Lutz Meschke met with F1 bosses in Monza while the German manufacturer continued to consider a possible return.

“Formula 1 could be one of the right places,” Meschke told Autosport. “As you know, Formula E is very important to us now, and F1 is always a good subject to think about. And I think we’re in pretty good talks about the new engine.”

When asked whether the plans for a simpler twin-turbo V6, in which the controversial and expensive MGU-H would fall, could make the F1 more attractive to Porsche, Meschke said: “Definitely a good way to achieve this goal to reach.”

However, he emphasized that his company, which is part of the VW Group, did not intend to return to Formula 1 as a designer, but merely as an engine supplier.

At the same time, VW CEO Bernhard Gobmeier seemed to be ruling out Formula 1, claiming that sport was on a “dangerous path” and referred to the sheer costs of sport, among other things.

With the introduction of the budget cap and the determined effort to prove the green credentials of the sport, not to mention the “boom” that the sport is currently enjoying, Formula 1 has suddenly become attractive again for Porsche.

“It’s no secret that we’re thinking about it,” says the new Porsche Motorsport Director Thomas Laudenbach, according to Speedcafe.com.

“It is no secret that we speak to the FIA ​​and it is no secret that we say we are seriously thinking about it. But no decision has been made yet,” he admits.

“As far as I know, there is a lot going in the right direction in Formula 1, such as the importance of electrification and the electrical part of the drive train.

“Many of the factors I mentioned after what we know could come true.”

But time is of the essence, he warned.

“One thing is clear, once such a decision is made, you can’t wait too long because if you want to race in 2025 you have to start at a certain point in time. Here we are.

“If someone is seriously considering entering this championship as a genset manufacturer, you should always combine that with a major rule change so that every step has to be taken and you are not the only one.

“It’s also no secret that Formula 1 does extremely well compared to other series when you look at PR values ​​and fan base as well as advertising value. No question about it.”