ANALYSIS: How safety played a pivotal role in defining the 2026 technical rules
FIA's Head of Future Regulations Paul Drewery stressed that making further steps to improve safety has been a focal point while defining the technical overhaul that will come into force in 2026.
Ahead of the Canadian Grand Prix, the FIA and Formula One released the technical regulations that will define the sport from 2026 onwards.
One of the key changes is that the new cars will be 30kg lighter than the current generation F1 cars which should improve efficiency and handling.
Power units will also go through a significant overhaul as the much-debated MGU-H will be ditched and the ratio between the internal combustion engine and the electrical energy will be even. The maximum deployment of electrical energy via the MGU-K (motor generator unit - kinetic) will go from 120 kilowatts (160 hp) under the current regs to a whopping 350 kw (475 hp) -- the same power output as the motor in a Formula E car.
The complete overhaul of the power unit has prompted the sport to introduce active aerodynamics to suit the energy management requirements of new power units. The new cars will run on 100% sustainable fuel.
FIA's Head of Future Regulations Paul Drewery said that improving the safety of the F1 cars has played a pivotal role in defining the rules of the next generation car.
The governing body had conducted thorough analysis of previous incidents, and the results have highlighted the front of the current cars as their weakpoint.
“We're always looking at ways of improving the safety. This car's no different, we looked at the current car, and we identified a number of areas where we felt we could improve. The front impact structure is one of the areas that we're looking to improve on.
"In the past, we've had a number of cases where the front impact structure has been knocked off by a glancing blow, leaving the car unprotected for any subsequent collisions.
"So what we're looking for at for 2026 is a front impact structure that acts in two stages. In the case of a glancing blow, it would break off approximately halfway down, adding a significant amount of impact absorbing structure left attached to the chassis.
"For the development of this we've had the involvement of four of the Formula One teams who have helped us with the analysis and with the experimentation.
Drewery has confirmed that the rules around the roll hoop will also be much stricter after the horrific accident Sauber's Zhou Guanyu suffered in the 2022 Silverstone race.
"Side intrusion is an important aspect of safety. It's been developed over many years, many times in reaction to incidents that happened on circuit. For 2026, we've gone back and reviewed all the specification of the intrusion on the chassis and redefined them. The roll hoop is another significant safety feature on the car. After the instant in Silverstone in 2022, we reviewed the loads which were used to test the roll hoop.
"We increased these loads for the 2024 season, but for 2026 we're making an additional increase in those loads. I think the part of these regulations that I'm most proud of is the nimble cars concept. A smaller, lighter car with no compromises to the safety," concluded Drewery.
