Amid much talk about the 2026 Formula One car and how tech-heavy it already feels on the simulator, the FIA’s single seater director, Nikolas Tombazis, has revealed that it is a top priority to ensure the cars of the new era have a natural feel to them.
With new engine and chassis regulations taking over next year, the F1 car is undergoing a complete overhaul, starting from its power unit, which will be powered equally by electric power and internal combustion. The current Drag Reduction System (DRS) will be replaced with active aerodynamics at the front and rear wings. Overall, the car will be more compact, lighter, and will feature narrower Pirellis.
While Charles Leclerc admitted that driving the 2026 car is very different compared to the current challenger, Alex Albon revealed that drivers will have to work a lot harder behind the wheel of the 2026 car, given the requirement for them to multitask as a result of the new features. In simple terms, F1 drivers have a larger technical role to play than just thinking about the fastest way around a corner. Based on driver feedback, Tombazis revealed that the FIA is working continuously with drivers and teams to make the process simpler, and to ensure that cars continue to have a “natural feel.” He said:
“What we are discussing, and where we are focusing our attention, particularly, is the exact characteristics of the cars and how they behave.
Oscar Piastri of Australia driving the (81) McLaren MCL39 Mercedes and Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB21 battle for track position into turn 1 at the start during…
Oscar Piastri of Australia driving the (81) McLaren MCL39 Mercedes and Max Verstappen of the Netherlands driving the (1) Oracle Red Bull Racing RB21 battle for track position into turn 1 at the start during the F1 Grand Prix of Netherlands at Circuit Zandvoort on August 31, 2025 in Zandvoort, Netherlands.
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“The obvious priority is that cars have a natural feel to them, and that we overcome any challenges in terms of energy management, how the electrical and combustion energies are balanced.
“So, in that respect, the teams, as the season is approaching, they’re doing more and more simulations, and more and more runs on their simulators, and some of these teams are giving us a reasonable amount of feedback on that, saying, ‘OK, in a particular circuit, we get this phenomenon or that phenomenon’.
“That feedback is getting more and more mature as time approaches, and we still have a process ongoing with the teams to dissolve some of these snags in the regulations and the energy management side, in order to make sure that the cars will behave normally.”
However, Tombazis admitted that there will be complaints from drivers initially, given the significant share of electric power, and revealed two goals that the FIA is working towards. He explained:
“Clearly, if you have more electrical and less combustion power, you are adding a level of complication in the management.
“The exercise now is to make sure that we don’t overburden the drivers with that, that the key driving skills have to remain the differentiating factors.
“Secondly, with the feedback of the teams from the simulators, that we eliminate any unnatural characteristics that make it look strange. These are the two core objectives.
“Any new regulation does need to have a bit less performance than the previous one. The cars naturally go faster year by year and, if the new regulations also made the cars go even faster, you can imagine where Formula 1 would be now.
“So it is natural that, if a driver gets out of one car and goes into a slightly slower car, he’s not going to say, ‘Wow, I’m really happy here’, in terms of comparison.
“While we’re getting closer to the season, running on the simulator with the cars close to the performance that they could have is quite recent. This process of refining the regulations is something that is still ongoing.”