- BYD confirms F1 talks with CEO Stefano Domenicali at Shanghai meeting.
- Three entry routes explored, including team acquisitions and works programme.
- FIA president backs Chinese manufacturer’s bid, but political obstacles remain.
BYD, the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, has confirmed it held direct talks with Formula 1 CEO Stefano Domenicali about joining the sport.
The Chinese automaker’s vice president, Stella Li, made the disclosure at the 2026 Beijing Motor Show this week. The admission moves BYD’s F1 ambitions from reported speculation to confirmed, active discussion.
Li told Sportmediaset that the meeting with Domenicali took place during the Chinese Grand Prix weekend in Shanghai in March.
“We met Stefano Domenicali in Shanghai. We maintain a warm relationship and are in regular contact,” she said, as reported by MotorsportWeek.
She also confirmed that an entry into the sport was a live possibility. “Yes, we are talking about it. It’s a real opportunity to test our technology,” Li added.
From rumour to reality
Bloomberg first reported in early March that BYD was exploring options in competitive motorsport, including F1 and endurance racing. Li’s comments in Beijing now place the story on firmer ground.
Li also gave a sense of her personal connection to the sport.
“I love Formula 1 because it’s all about passion and culture, and people dream of driving in Formula 1,” she said.
The meeting with Domenicali is significant because it involved the sport’s chief executive directly.
It was not a preliminary or informal inquiry at a working level. A vice president of a major global company sat across the table from F1’s top official and discussed a potential entry.
That alone marks a shift. Until this week, BYD’s interest in F1 existed largely as a rumour with Bloomberg’s reporting as its only credible basis.
Why F1, and why now?
The timing of BYD’s interest is not accidental. The 2026 season brought sweeping changes to F1’s power unit regulations.
The new rules significantly raised the contribution of the electric motor, with the MGU-K now delivering 350 kW to the rear wheels, up from 120 kW in the previous era.
Roughly half of the power unit’s total output now comes from electrical components.
BYD manufactures its own batteries, motors and power electronics. That gives it a degree of technical relevance to the new formula that it would not have had under the old regulations.
Li’s remark about testing technology in F1 reflects exactly this logic.
BYD has also shown a growing appetite for performance. Its Yangwang U9 electric supercar reached 472 km/h during track testing and produces close to 3,000 horsepower.
The company also opened its own all-terrain racing circuit in China last year.
The commercial case is just as clear. BYD is pushing hard into international markets.
F1’s biggest audiences sit in the high-income regions where BYD is trying to establish itself as a serious alternative to established European and American brands.
How could BYD enter?
According to the Sportmediaset interview, three options are under consideration.
BYD could build its own works team, supply power units to an existing constructor, or become a commercial partner of the championship itself.
Each path carries a different cost and a different timeline. Building a team from scratch is the most expensive route.
German outlet Auto Motor und Sport (AMuS) estimates the cost of running an F1 team at around $500 million per season.
For comparison, General Motors paid a $450 million anti-dilution fee alone to bring Cadillac onto the grid as the 11th team in 2026, before accounting for any operational or development costs.
Acquiring an existing team is a faster route. AMuS has reported that BYD has looked at whether buying a team is viable, with Alpine and Aston Martin identified as the two most closely watched candidates.
Renault CEO Luca de Meo has publicly stated that Alpine is not for sale and reportedly rejected a $1.2 billion bid.
Aston Martin, valued at around $3 billion last year, has faced a difficult start to the 2026 season under owner Lawrence Stroll.
AMuS reported that Stroll could soon reach a breaking point, which would make the team a potential acquisition target. Separate reports have also floated the possibility of Red Bull selling Racing Bulls to BYD.
The political landscape
BYD would receive a warm reception from FIA President Mohammed Ben Sulayem, who has been publicly enthusiastic about a Chinese manufacturer entering F1.
“It’s been my dream for the last two years that the big countries should have a presence in Formula 1,” Ben Sulayem told French outlet Le Figaro.
“The United States will be with General Motors. The next step is to welcome a Chinese manufacturer.”
Ben Sulayem has also argued that a Chinese team would increase F1’s overall commercial value, particularly in Asia.
“If there is a team from China, let’s say, and FOM approved it, and I am 100 per cent they will approve it, wouldn’t it make more money with China coming in? I believe, yes,” he said.
The current Concorde Agreement, signed in December 2025 and running through 2030, permits up to 13 teams and 26 cars.
With Cadillac now on the grid as the 11th constructor, there is room for two more entries under the existing framework.
However, existing teams have historically resisted new entrants. A larger grid dilutes both prize money and team valuations.
The prolonged battle Cadillac fought under the Andretti banner before gaining approval is the clearest recent example of that resistance.
What it would mean for F1
A BYD entry would represent the first direct attempt by a Chinese manufacturer to compete in a sport long shaped by European constructors and, more recently, American investment.
For F1, it would deepen the sport’s commercial reach into the world’s largest car market.
For BYD, it would offer global visibility in markets where it currently has little presence, including the United States, where the company does not currently sell cars due to high tariffs.
Whether the talks produce a formal commitment remains unclear. The sport’s history is full of serious conversations that ended without a deal.
But this week, for the first time, BYD’s interest in F1 has a name, a city and a meeting attached to it. The next move will tell the paddock how serious it really is.
