BYD, which broke several performance records with its Yangwang U9X electric supercar late last year, is targeting competitive motorsports in its latest effort to raise brand awareness.
The Chinese automaker is considering entering the Federation Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA)’s Formula 1 and the World Endurance Championship‘s Le Mans race, either by building its own team or acquiring an existing one.
The information was first reported by Bloomberg on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The move comes as both competitions shift toward hybrid powertrains and away from pure combustion engines.
No decision has been made, the sources said, and BYD could still opt out.
A major obstacle would be the costs — developing and running a competitive car can reach $500 million per season, on top of what are typically lengthy entry negotiations.
A Growing Chinese Presence
Motorsport remains dominated by European and American teams, though Chinese automakers have begun to make inroads.
Geely competes through Cyan Racing, formerly the Volvo factory team and the self-described “reigning World Champion team of touring car racing.”
In 2014, the very first FIA Formula E race, with only pure electric vehicles, was held in Beijing.
By then, Nio — which had recently been founded — secured the inaugural Formula E Drivers’ Championship in 2015.
In early 2025, FIA’s President Mohammed Ben Sulayem encouraged Chinese automakers to participate in Formula 1.
Speaking with French media outlet Le Figaro, Sulayem said it’s “been my dream for the last two years that the big countries should have a presence in Formula 1.”
“The United States will be with General Motors,” he noted, adding that “the next step is to welcome a Chinese manufacturer.”
The President also highlighted that Formula 1 already had a Chinese driver — Zhou Guanyu, which competed for Alfa Romeo between 2022 and 2024.
Guanyu joined Cadillac‘s team as a reserve driver in 2026.
Yangwang U9X
Last October, BYD announced that the U9X supercar of its sub-brand Yangwang beat a performance record in the iconic Nürburgring racetrack.
The fully electric performance car completed the lap in 6 minutes, 59.157 seconds, dethroning the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra by about five seconds.
Xiaomi‘s model had completed the circuit in 7 minutes and 4.957 seconds on June 11.
A few weeks ago, the U9 Xtreme had reached a top speed of 496.22 km/h (308.34 mph) at Germany’s Automotive Testing Papenburg (ATP) track, becoming the fastest production car to date.
The U9X delivers 2,978 brake horsepower from four electric motors, about 130% more than the 1,288bhp of the standard version.
The standard U9, priced at 1.68 million yuan ($244,300), is equipped with four 240 kW electric motors producing a combined output of 960 kW.
Yangwang debuted two years ago in China, competing directly with brands like Ferrari and Porsche — as the latter’s sales figures keep weakening month per month in the market.
In July, BYD announced that the Yangwang brand would be expanding to Europe, becoming the first Chinese automaker to enter the top-tier luxury segment on the continent.
However, the launch timeline for Yangwang in Europe remains unclear.
Late last week, BYD unveiled the latest generation of its battery charging system — capable of refilling a pack from 10% to 97% in nine minutes.
The company has been battling lower domestic sales as its overseas deliveries continue increasing.
