Ford CEO Jim Farley Rules Out Homegrown F1 Racing Program

It’s been well over a year since Ford announced that it would be making a return to Formula 1 racing in 2026, though it won’t be doing so as a full-blown racing team – but rather, as a power unit manufacturer for the Oracle Red Bull Racing team. Regardless, The Blue Oval enjoyed tremendous success in that series for a number of years, which had many wondering – would the automaker consider one day owning and operating its own full-blown F1 team? Turns out, that isn’t the case, at least for now.

“We have no aspiration to own a team. We have no aspiration to build a Ford Formula 1 car. Because we believe that value in Formula 1 is the tech transfer. And the tech transfer that really matters is software telemetry, aero, and battery tech,” Ford CEO Jim Farley told Bloomberg‘s Hannah Elliot during a recent podcast.

“We have no interest in owning a team,” Farley added a bit later in the interview. “We’ve done that in the past, it really didn’t work out. We’re not good at running Formula 1 teams. We tried, we wound up kind of leaving the sport with our tail between our legs. We don’t want to do that again. It’s a totally practical relationship,” he said of the automaker’s pairing with Red Bull.

Currently, Red Bull dominates F1, but does so with Honda supplying its power units. That relationship will end after the 2025 season, however, giving Ford the chance to step in and make a return to Formula 1, as least in some capacity. Both entities are admittedly taking a risk with that move, though both also have high hopes for a fast start. The duo could benefit from the fact that Ford has a bit of a head start in developing next-gen power units, which will also help it develop tech that is one day destined for The Blue Oval’s road-going models.

We’ll have more on Ford’s return to F1 soon, so sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford motorsports news and ongoing Ford news coverage.