Formula 1's competitive order might be dictated by engine power with the new rule change in 2026, according to new Aston Martin designer Adrian Newey.
Newey was poached from Red Bull by Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll as part of the ambition to make the team title contenders under the new regulations.
Newey's cars dominated F1 in spells either side of V6 turbo hybrid era, which started in 2014.
The introduction of those engines at one point had made Newey consider quitting F1 altogether, given how far behind the rest of the pack found themselves from Mercedes.
The Englishman has hinted that similar could happen this time around.
"There has to be a big chance that it's an engine formula at the start," Newey told Auto Motor und Sport.
"I can't remember another time in Formula 1 when both the chassis regulations and the engine regulations have changed simultaneously, and where in this case the chassis regulations have been very much written to try to compensate, let's say, for the power unit regulations. So there's an extra dimension."
Newey was signed by Aston Martin owner Lawrence Stroll, who has assembled something of a super team of engineering talent behind the scenes.
Stroll has also secured Honda engines from 2026 onwards, with the Japanese manufacturer ending its successful affiliation with Red Bull.
With engines set to be a key focus of the new change, Honda's might will be pitted against Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault and the incoming Audi project.
Newey continued: "There has to be a chance that one manufacturer will come out well on top, and it will become a power-unit-dominated regulation, at least to start with. There's a chance that if it's on the combustion engine side of it, that somebody comes up with a dominant combustion engine that will last through the length of the formula, because the way the regulations are written, it's quite difficult for people who are behind to catch up.
"If it's on the electrical side, then there's much more ability to catch up if you're behind. And on the fuel side, which might play a role as well, there's flexibility in principle, but with dyno restrictions and the fact that everything's so optimised, you can't simply chuck a different fuel into an engine that hasn't been optimised for it."
Stroll does not seem finished with his team-building. A recent report in the Daily Mail suggested the Canadian billionaire is readying an eye-watering bid for four-time world champion Max Verstappen.