Vowles claims Red Bull 'turned down' Bahrain engine in 'game' against F1 2026 frontrunners

17:30, 24 Feb

byHenry Eccles

Williams boss James Vowles has claimed Red Bull "turned down" their engine in Bahrain after rivals began to talk about the Ford-backed power unit's impressive performance during pre-season testing.

The Red Bull-Ford powertrain was strong both on mileage and lap times across testing, with Max Verstappen's quickest lap times enough to put him the top three on the two final days - a week after Mercedes boss Toto Wolff claimed that the Milton Keynes' work on energy deployment meant they were the early "benchmark" heading into 2026.

Vowles, however, believes Red Bull were still hiding performance, as too were the other top teams in a "game" being played with power unit set ups and fuel loads.

"Games being played" in F1 paddock, says Vowles

Photo: Race Pictures.

Speaking to F1TV on the final day of Bahrain testing, Vowles said: "There are games being played.

"Red Bull looked really good until we spoke about their power unit. Then they've turned it down quite a bit since then."

"Ferrari, well done to them, really. They're coming up with great innovations, and they are moving forward, and I think they are competitive as they are."

"Mercedes, just because they came out the box really strong, and they’ve been strong all days. You can't discount them.

Vowles then added that the F1 paddock has found it hard it difficult to gain an understanding on what the pecking order looks like, with the Williams boss also predicting swings in performance across a variety of circuits.

"So what I’m saying to you is, even within the paddock right now, depending on what games people are playing on power unit and fuel, it’s hard to tell.

"Then, on top of that, I would add that you’re going to see more than ever before, swings, circuit to circuit, based on what characteristics the power unit and the car teams have come up with.

"So even if today, Ferrari could win a race here, that doesn’t mean they will in Melbourne."

Carlos Sainz questions Verstappen, Hamilton F1 2026 criticism

Vowles' driver, Carlos Sainz, has criticised the likes of Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton for their public criticism of F1's 2026 regulations, saying that he prefers not to "speak badly about my sport" in public.

Read here to find out more about Sainz's thoughts on F1 2026.