4 min readNew DelhiFeb 23, 2026 10:19 PM IST
First published on: Feb 23, 2026 at 10:19 PM IST
Imagine a world where Fernando Alonso never overtook Michael Schumacher at Suzuka, 2005 as he took his foot off the pedal a bit early to conserve energy, or where a young Max Verstappen never roared past Nico Rosberg at Interlagos, 2016 because the engine couldn’t handle it.
Formula One’s regulations have undergone a big change but as with every rule alteration, it’s not come without controversy. There is panic in the paddock over how difficult overtaking might be during this season with ‘energy management’ becoming a concern for multiple drivers.
It takes time to iron out all the wrinkles after a massive rule change, but some drivers don’t think this new era has begun on the right foot. New rules have been introduced for the chassis, engines and tyres, along with the adoption of sustainable fuel.
The restructured engines now feature a near-equal balance between internal combustion and electrical components. Crucially, they deliver three times the electrical power than was there last year, despite utilizing a battery of almost the same size.
The new regulations now permit drivers to employ several techniques for energy management: braking, maintaining high engine revolutions while cornering, lifting off the accelerator and coasting towards the end of the straights, and utilizing the electrical motor to counter the engine at full throttle.
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Driver reactions are mixed, to say the least, with the more experienced of the bunch seemingly more critical of this generation of cars.
Four-time World Champion Verstappen is not one to mince words. “To drive, [it’s] not a lot of fun, to be honest. It’s not very Formula 1-like. It feels a bit more like Formula E on steroids. But the rules are the same for everyone, so you have to deal with that.”
“As a pure driver, I enjoy driving flat out. And at the moment, you cannot drive like that. There’s a lot going on. A lot of what you do as a driver, in terms of inputs, has a massive effect on the energy side of things. For me, that’s just not Formula 1.”
Lewis Hamilton called the new regulations “ridiculously complex” while Alonso sarcastically remarked that “the chef could drive the car” due to the slow speed required at some fast corners to harvest energy.
Lando Norris initially described the cars as “fun” but later admitted that this was to gauge public reaction. He noted that the amount of energy management necessary “is certainly not the purest form of racing.”
Amidst this backlash, lap times from testing are telling a different story, with the cars still poised to be quite fast. Technically, they are going slower on the corners to go faster on the straights, but that doesn’t translate much to driving skill. Overtaking on a corner, being the last of the late breakers, has given F1 countless iconic moments through the years, and compromising it to conserve energy for later laps needs some adjustment.
F1 is considered the pinnacle of motorsport, where drivers are constantly on the limit, and these current regulations seek to balance that thrill with the new skill of energy management.
(The writer is an intern with The Indian Express)
Red Bull driver Max Verstappen gets into his car on the third day of Formula One pre-season test at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, Bahrain. (PHOTO: AP) 
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