![\"McLaren](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/XPB_1399692_HiRes.jpg\")
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tZak Brown has come to the defence of the new F1 regs. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
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\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tZak Brown has come to the defence of the new F1 regs. Image: XPB Images<\/p>\n
Formula 1 has made a ropy start to its latest ruleset, the 50-50 split of battery power to internal combustion power far from universally popular.<\/p>\n
Energy starvation from the batteries has led to bizarre phenomena such as superclipping with cars slowing down on straights while the driver is that full throttle.<\/p>\n
Harvesting has been particularly tough on the qualifying spectacle, with drivers no longer pushing to the grip limit, while a significant uptick in overtaking during races has been labelled by many as artificial.<\/p>\n
Much of the criticism has come from the driver group, although the booming fan base also has significant factions that are unsatisfied with the product.<\/p>\n
F1 has already acted after the first three races of the season with changes to be introduced ahead of the Miami Grand Prix to reduce the effect of harvesting and superclipping<\/a>.<\/p>\n Whether the changes will solve these issues, however, won\u2019t be clear until trialled in the real world.<\/p>\n Oscar Piastri reacts to in-season F1 rule changes<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n McLaren has been one of the team\u2019s worst affected by the introduction of the new rules, going from winning two constructors\u2019 world championships on the bounce in 2024 and 2025 to being out-classed by Mercedes and Ferrari this year.<\/p>\n Still, McLaren CEO Brown is backing the new rules, urging they be given time to bed in and citing the competitiveness at the end of the outgoing engine regulations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re three races into it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI appreciate everyone gets excited when there\u2019s new technology, new rules, new cars. I know we all like to kind of, Race 1, be a bit dramatic.<\/p>\n \u201cHere we are going into Race 4 and we\u2019ve now made some substantial changes that I think will be a good improvement. Whether we need to continue in that direction, let\u2019s wait and see.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it was the same noise as the hybrid era and that turned out to be just fine. And towards the tail end \u2013 obviously we don\u2019t want to wait 10 years \u2013 but I think it was the most competitive Formula 1 ever.\u201d<\/p>\n The radical shift in power unit philosophy has been questioned given the global popularity of F1, with concerns that fans could lose interest in what has been dubbed \u2018battery racing\u2019.<\/p>\n Brown, however, warned the industry of not conflating driver concerns regarding the spectacle with the reaction of the global TV audience.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s interesting on pit wall. I understand the drivers\u2019 reaction, but then you actually watch it on TV,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI can\u2019t remember an Australian Grand Prix where the lead changed hands four or five times over two three laps.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I actually think on television it\u2019s been very exciting. The way the drivers have raced to pass each other four or five times, they\u2019ve not been happy with it, but that actually doesn\u2019t translate on TV.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I think the races have been very exciting, and I think we\u2019ve taken corrective action [with the rule changes] to hopefully accomplish both, which is to continue with the exciting television coverage, and have the drivers feel like they\u2019ve got a Formula 1 car underneath their butt.\u201d<\/p>\n Zak Brown wants Christian Horner back in F1<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/speedcafe.b-cdn.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/3-1.webp\")
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