F1 2026 thread

Yet we watch and enjoy. Passing capability matters more than outright speed. Racing…..

No passing processions are the issue that should be minimized.

 

FYI on this 'test' of Pirelli - Seems downforce wont be down that much in realistic terms so we should not see a major drop in times? Thinking after a few races the downforce will be back potentially. Large caveat given the cars used and the configurations of them.

--Initial plans to reduce overall downforce by 40 percent have been watered down to around 15 percent following concerns over slower lap times, which are now expected to be more in line with current performance levels. But the new generation of cars are substantially different in how and where they generate performance, so Pirelli has to rely on the imperfect solution of mule cars – machinery from 2022-2024 with trimmed wings – to collect real-life data from its new rubber.

Following an initial test with Aston Martin in September – in its 2022 model – and recent wet-compound running at Le Castellet, Ferrari and McLaren conducted work in Barcelona in more recent cars with significantly lower wing levels, appearing with fully flat mainplanes more akin to something one would see in Baku or Las Vegas rather than at the high-downforce Montmelo circuit.

The overall downforce levels of these mule cars will be relatively close to the start-of-2026 specifications, but because the cars are so different it is still difficult for Pirelli to correctly reproduce the loads its tyres will be subjected to. It is therefore relying on being regularly fed simulations from teams to stay ahead of the curve.

"The first tests were mainly dedicated to understand how the mule cars are working, because obviously they are different," Pirelli's motorsport chief Mario Isola told Autosport. "The only thing we can do is to continuously ask for updated 2026 simulations from the teams, basically. We must update our know-how and update our construction according to the data that we receive.--

https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/how-pirelli-is-testing-2026-f1-tyres-without-2026-cars/10694030/

 

F1 plans to start 2026 testing in Barcelona in January

 

Looks more like a blunt object with a handle lol.

 

FIA reveals new technical rules: F1 cars to start with key in '26

The FIA has announced more details about the technical regulations that the F1 cars of 2026 must comply with. Most notably, a feature has been introduced to ensure that drivers who stall their cars can quickly get back on track by themselves. It has been decided that from 2026, F1 cars will start with a key in the ignition.
Currently, F1 cars are started with a special starting device. These expensive devices will also disappear from Formula 1 by 2026, providing cost savings for the teams.

The introduction of the traditional key in the ignition has been a long-standing wish of various team principals. Toto Wolff from Mercedes is understood to have been a supporter of this innovative way to start cars for years. It is rumored that the Austrian has pushed the FIA to include this feature in the technical regulations for 2026.

 

Nice update on the new PU’s via a look at Mercedes take on them

'Complete tear-up' - Inside Mercedes' 2026 F1 engine project


https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/inside-mercedes-complete-tear-up-2026-f1-engine-revolution-exclusive/

 

Via Joe Saward Blog:

The only other “news” is that the F1 calendar for next year is currently on hold because the planned race in Madrid is still not certain. The Spaniards have been slow to get things moving and although they insist that all is well and that everything will be done in the time available, there is still no sign of any construction work beginning – and that is worrying Formula 1. It is not a massive problem because F1 can always go ahead without Madrid and it can probably find another race willing to step up and fill the gap in the calendar, but the uncertainty means that everything is currently on hold.

 

Peak F1 has passed?.

 

Horner is in favor lol. Poor engine development is the rumor as they continue to want to modify the new regs.

F1 could ditch a core part of its 2026 engine plan
Apr 20, 2025
by Jon Noble

Formula 1 chiefs will discuss with teams next week the idea of a significant change to the 2026 engine rules aimed at heading off fears about cars repeatedly running out of energy, The Race can reveal.

The idea would mean F1 moves away in races from the 50/50 power split between the internal combustion engine and battery that has been a core principle of the new regulations.

As work continues behind the scenes on the design of the all-new turbo hybrid power units, worries have been repeatedly aired about the possibility of them having a bad impact on the racing.

The biggest concern is that there will not be enough harvesting to allow for as much battery deployment as teams would like.

For some power-sensitive tracks such as Monza, there have been worries that cars could run out of energy halfway down the straight - providing not just a poor spectacle but huge frustrations for drivers too.

Efforts have been made by the FIA to tweak the rules and minimise the prospect of cars running out of energy too early, which includes what is known as a 'turn down ramp rate' that prevents teams burning all their energy too quickly coming out of a corner.

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Instead, power can only be reduced gradually, which effectively forces teams to stretch their use of energy deployment further along a straight.

While some manufacturers believe the current regulations are enough to prevent problems at most tracks, not everyone is convinced - and the FIA has been conducting further analysis of the situation.

The Race has learned that, as part of a push to minimise the risk of problems in races, a proposal has been put forward for discussion at next week's F1 Commission meeting to introduce a major change to the regulations.

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While the 50/50 power split between the ICE and battery will remain in place for qualifying, an idea has been tabled for a major shift for the races.

The proposal is that battery power deployment be reduced from the current 350kW down to 200kW for races. This will shift the ICE/battery power ratio from 50/50 to 64/36. The split is 85/15 in the current F1 regulations.

The idea behind the move is that, with less power being deployed, what energy the battery has stored up can be unleashed over a much greater distance of the lap, and especially for a longer time down the straights.


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While the reduction in power, equivalent to 200bhp, will have an impact in holding back acceleration immediately out of a corner, sources have indicated that the performance profile around a lap will be more consistent as cars are running less of the lap without any battery power at all.

One of the other added benefits of the change is that, with the override overtake element remaining at 350kW, more overtaking opportunities should be opened up as there will be a bigger offset between cars that have it and those that do not.

The idea of pulling the battery power down from 350kW to 200kW for races has been supported by Red Bull team principal Christian Horner, who said he thinks it will help avoid the worst of drivers being on economy runs.

"What we desperately want to avoid is a situation where drivers are lifting and coasting from halfway down the straight," he told The Race. "That will frustrate the drivers. It will be bad for the spectacle of out and out racing.

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"The FIA have all the info, and waiting until the start of next year to do something is arguably too late. We've still got eight months to sort things out.

"I think the FIA have obviously started to see something that concerns them, and it's only right that they address it with plenty of time, which there still is, in time for next year's rules introduction."

But not everyone is in agreement with the change - and the rule tweak will need support from a super majority of manufacturers if it is to go through.

Mercedes F1 CEO Toto Wolff has made it clear that he is against any move to change the regulations in such a way before the cars are seen in action for the first time.

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"I think we should stick to the outcome of the last engine meeting and see how everything pans out next year, rather than try to predict what it's all going to be like," he told The Race.

"The power unit manufacturers have said clearly in the meeting last Friday in Bahrain, 'Let's get going, push the pause button for the moment, and then in 12 months' time, decide whether there's something to do'."

Asked if it would not be better to get ahead of any problems before the season starts, Wolff replied: "I think we can react pretty quickly if there was such a problem.

"But I think it's again gamesmanship, based on guessing and opinion. There is no data supporting any of that [concern]. So it's just another opinion. Yet again."

 

Seems like more of mess is coming potentially? Why not wait 1 more year and get it sorted?

F1 butchered its 2026 cars for an ideal it might now discard
https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-major-2026-engine-change-would-be-pragmatic-but-a-failure/
--

That’s because of the extent to which the chassis regulations have been butchered, sacrificed at the altar of the 50/50 split dream. Previous priorities, such as the 'raceability' of the machinery and the need to reduce the weight and size of the cars, have suffered as a result.

The rulemakers have done what they can to keep these factors in mind, and even made gains on weight, but the first order challenge has long been finding a way to ensure the cars are fast enough. That’s led to the straight and corner mode switch that reduces drag massively on the straights while maintaining corner speed.

And it’s not just the chassis rules, Pirelli was also asked to make a contribution to the drag reduction by making the tyres narrower by 25mm at the front and 30mm at the rear (a reduction of 8.2% and 7.4% respectively) while maintaining the same level of grip. Unsurprisingly, there has been criticism of the tyres and the contact patch in particular.

These compromises are justifiable in service of the primary goal. But if achieving that is uncertain enough to warrant the possibility that the electric motor can’t be used at or near its potential throughout the race, then what has it all been for? This situation could have been avoided in the conception phase, for example by permitting energy harvesting off the front axle too, but such ideas were baulked at for fear it may give manufacturers with experience of such technology in racing (ie Audi) an advantage.

And make no mistake, this isn’t a criticism solely directed at the FIA, which worked hard to balance up the demands of the various stakeholders and that, according to single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis, has come up with a rules package that will create good racing in 2026. The manufacturers themselves also played a major role.

If the one concept, that of the 50/50 power split, must be rolled back on in the race (save for when the overtaking override kicks in and allows the full 350kW), then the compromises to the cars and tyres, and the likely impact on the racing that come as a result of this, cannot now be justified - and never were.

 

But...but.....but the Sprint Format..................

LOLLLLLLLLLLL Ha - Heh!!

 

More at the link below:

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/f1-2026-engine-catch-up-idea-agreed-but-power-change-splits-opinions/

F1 2026 engine catch-up idea agreed, but power change splits opinion
The Formula 1 Commission has agreed to explore ways for manufacturers to catch up next season if their all-new engines are not competitive.

But a radical idea to cut back on battery power in races, aimed at helping alleviate fears of cars running out of energy down straights, left opinion divided in its current guise.

Senior figures from F1 and the FIA, plus representatives of the teams, met in Geneva on Thursday to discuss a range of measures for the future – with the agenda dominated by issues relating to 2026.

There are two key concerns that are trying to be addressed as F1 moves to get the new engine rules into the best shape possible.

 

10x higher? F1 teams braced for 'ridiculous' rise in fuel costs in 2026
Most teams can afford this now. Since they are profit centers/funds by default. Pay up -You agree'd lol. Ferrari can tell Shell they get free space on the car in exchange for fuel!??

https://www.the-race.com/formula-1/10x-higher-f1-teams-braced-for-ridiculous-rise-in-fuel-costs-for-2026/

--As development work continues on the new fully sustainable fuels that will be used for the first time in F1 in 2026, the reality of the development expenditure and the price of the product has started to raise concerns in the paddock about the impact it could have on team budgets.

Following discussions at the recent F1 Commission meeting in Geneva, the scale of the issue has become clear – with concerns expressed that the new fuels could cost 10 times as much as they currently do.

Although the price of fuel varies between manufacturers, it is understood that the current projections are for it to be between $170 – $225 per litre – which is a step up from the current price that is believed to be in the $22 - $33 range.

However, one team boss has suggested that, as more development goes into the fuel to finalise the ingredients needed for best performance, costs are continuing to rise.

And there are now concerns that the final price could escalate well beyond $300 per litre.

Budget ramifications
Based on the anticipated fuel economy of the cars next year, allied to the mileage accrued over a race weekend, this could mean in a worst-case scenario, that teams could be forced to spend $80,000 - $100,000 on fuel each weekend.

That would work out at $1.9-$2.4 million for a 24-race calendar – well above what is being paid right now. The costs could potentially be even higher for those teams that do not have official partnerships with fuel suppliers, which could help them secure more favourable deals.

The only slight reprieve that teams have over the increase in the price of fuel is that for 2026, the cost of petrol is outside of the cost cap for the first time.

For 2026, F1’s Financial Regulations state: “The cost of FIA homologated fuel purchased by or on behalf of an F1 Team for use during Competition and Testing, together with the cost of transportation of that FIA homologated fuel to the F1 Team’s premises.”

However, an increase in expenditure of this magnitude is not something that teams can simply write off without it making a difference.

One team principal said the potential for a near 10-fold increase in their fuel costs for next year was “ridiculous”, and they supported efforts to try to get things changed for the longer term.

2027 revisions on the table
The FIA has taken teams' concerns on board, and the governing body is understood to be evaluating ways to improve the situation.

And while nothing can be done at this late stage to change things for next year, it is understood that the FIA has agreed with teams to work together on coming up with some solutions for 2027 to address the situation.

One idea is for some elements of the fuel to be made standard with cheaper ingredients, with only limited areas that can then be developed by each fuel manufacturer.

Speaking recently, the FIA’s single seater director Nikolas Tombazis (above, left) was aware that costs were high right now – but he expressed some optimism that advances in technology would bring the price down.

It will come down like every technology comes down,” he said. “Initially, everything is new, everything is innovative, and everything is a prototype in some ways. And gradually, as people learn, they will gradually move them [the costs] down.

“I'm not saying it is fully realistic tomorrow to go into a road car, but I think the learning these important partners have will help them drive down the costs. They need to do that for F1 as well as for their day-to-day business.” --

 

Testing next year will be wild for speculation on performance!! Honest 'sand-bagging' probably.............