Audi reveals first F1 livery as Racing Bulls hit the track – round-up

Henry Valantine 20 Jan 2026 9:00 PM

F1 news as Audi F1 launches its car and Racing Bulls took to the track at Imola.

A busy, busy day of F1 news, with Audi, Honda, Racing Bulls and Mercedes all in the headlines.

It has been an incredibly busy day of F1 news, as we wake up from our winter slumber with several launches.

Audi, Racing Bulls, Aston Martin and Honda all made the big headlines, so join us as we wrap up the day’s action.

Audi reveals striking R26 livery

Audi has unveiled its first ever Formula 1 livery at a launch in Berlin, with an evolution of the R26 Concept car design it unveiled towards the end of last season.

With a titanium-shaded finish on the front half of the car, with ‘Lava Red’ shading on the airbox and sidepods, the red colour remains on a black backdrop at the rear of the car, creating an interesting contrast.

Audi also revealed its ambitious timeline to be challenging for titles by the 2030 season, with its aim for 2026 simply to be among the points scorers.

Racing Bulls demo reveals fresh details

Racing Bulls took to a wet Imola to undertake a demo run of its new car, the VCARB03, with photos having emerged from the team’s short run before an anticipated filming day on Wednesday.

On this evidence, there are already differences on which to pick up compared to the renders the team unveiled at its season launch last week.

Our Tech Editor, Matt Somerfield, has taken a much closer look.

Honda unveils F1 2026 engine in Tokyo launch

Senior Honda team members were joined by their Aston Martin colleagues in Japan to pull the covers off the marque’s new power unit, named the RA626H.

It is the first glimpse any manufacturer has given into what a 2026 power unit looks like, with Honda entering into a sole supplier deal with Aston Martin this season.

Honda Racing boss, Koji Watanabe, has spoken of the room for interpretation in the rules this year, which may lead to innovation in the enginer department.

Mercedes’ championship-winning designer to depart

Away from unveilings, Mercedes’ director of car design and former chief designer, John Owen, is set to step down from his role in the coming months.

Owen has spent almost two decades at Brackley, stretching back to the team’s time as Honda, and he will step away from his role for a period of gardening leave when he eventually leaves the team.

Mercedes will be promoting internally in his place, with engineering director, Giacomo Tortora and deputy technical director, Simone Resta, set to oversee the technical team.

What ‘Active Aero’ means and how it will work

The term ‘Active Aero’ is set to become a much bigger part of the Formula 1 lexicon in 2026, with it being one of the key additional traits of the sport’s new cars.

We’ve taken a closer look at what it will entail, and how it will have the opportunity to be a game-changer by the time the Australian Grand Prix comes around.

Get ahead of the game, so you’re in the know come the start of the season.

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