It was beforehand revealed that the turbocharged, 1.6-litre V6 inner combustion engine ingredient of the facility unit is being diminished from 550-560kW all the way down to 400kW (535bhp), and that the battery ingredient will leap from 150kW to 350kW (470bhp) to switch that energy loss – regardless of the eradication of the MGU-H.
The newest draft of the 2026 energy unit rules has been unveiled by the FIA and presents some new performance for the extra highly effective hybrid system to assist enhance the wheel-to-wheel racing.
It had lengthy been established that there was a want to have a push-to-pass side with the incoming energy unit, slightly than all of the power being allotted over the course of a lap by the methods themselves.
Nevertheless, the main points of such a system had but to be formally introduced, and whereas this newest draft of the rules doesn’t cowl every thing, Article 5.4.8 places a number of the framework in place.
The primary portion of Article 5.4.8 creates a glide path for power deployment from the ERS-Ok hybrid system as much as 345km/h (215mph). The second portion covers what’s being dubbed by the FIA as an ‘override mode’, whereby the driving force will have the ability to deploy extra energy to infill the power created by the glide path and supply an extra enhance as much as 355km/h (220.5mph).
This secondary operate will present a extra strategic side to power deployment and require the driving force to decide on whether or not or when to make use of it because it turns into obtainable. It’s comparable in idea to the KERS operate that F1 had between 2009-2013, with drivers in a position to make use of that power allotment to assault, defend or deploy it for lap time enchancment.
Given how way more reliance is positioned on the hybrid side of the facility unit from 2026 onwards, it implies that drivers gained’t at all times have the power to make use of the ‘override’ operate. And, in the event that they do, they may danger placing themselves in an power deficit underneath regular deployment situations additional across the lap or over the course of the subsequent few laps.
Max Verstappen, Pink Bull Racing RB20 the sector at first
Photograph by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Combating with one other driver in wheel-to-wheel fight can be only one side of how this new system can be employed by each drivers and their engineers, as they appear to extract the most effective from the automobile through the course of a lap, throughout battles and over a race distance.
The 2026 engine rules have attracted probably the most producers on the grid since 2008, with the present 4 engine suppliers set to be joined by Audi and Ford (by way of Pink Bull Powertrains).
As revealed by Autosport in December, the FIA may also introduce new chassis guidelines in 2026 to make the vehicles between 40-50kg lighter.
The vehicles can be shorter, with the wheelbase possible trimmed all the way down to 3400mm from the present most 3600mm. The vehicles may also be narrower by 10cm, so can be diminished from 2000mm to 1900mm.
One other step change from the present vehicles would be the addition of additional moveable aero to assist scale back drag on the straights.