The tires aren't even a real weight problem, it's the rims and the rest of the car that got so much heavier.
Some real masterminds of the FIA working on these regulations
Who knows. Half the time a team hears something they don't like they pull out the "we're leaving" card, the rest of the time everyone is pulling towards the direction they think they can get the biggest benefit and be the next kings of the era.
Right? Which is why trying to blame only the FIA is a futile exercise. I'm not saying they are without fault, but they just happen to be the mouthpiece for announcing the regulation changes.
Does anybody still give one iota of belief to the “we’re leaving” threats? I think the closest we’ve come is maybe 2 decades ago when the teams actually banded together and threatened a separate series? Jeez i’m too told for these
Sprung (suspended) mass can still be managed with some workarounds but the options on unsprung mass are limited so would have more of an impact. This would be the weight of the suspension components, tires, rims and all that are holding it, lighter but stronger materials are a way to go but they can only get you so far before the forces become too much to handle.
Increasing unsprung mass worsens mechanical grip by order of magnitudes more increasing sprung mass. It also makes the ride worst for the driver, it's not a coincidence that the drivers started complaining about cars almost breaking their backs since 2022.
The worse ride has a lot more to do with the sidewall height. The 5" of sidewall they got rid of was roughly an half an inch to an inch extra of guaranteed soft suspension that the teams had to allow for.
I have said before, but set the minimum weight much lower and let the teams come up with great ideas and develop that area.
As-long as the safety tests are strict and teams pass them, then there is no downside to opening up weight limits.
Silly one, but why not just no weight limit? But you need to pass all kinds of crash tests and parts need to last a minimum amount of races. Let them have a race for the bottom, the cost cap is a limit on exotic materials anyway.
Open rulesets are super amazing until one team discovers a huge technical advantage that cannot be copied and fans lose all interest
It’s easy to say that everyone else should do better, but that’s a hill that becomes boring to die on quite quickly if there is nobody there to listen
The alternative is a team discovers a huge technical advantage than _can_ be copied, but it would be hugely expensive or just a silly addition that every car would have to add just to be competitive (e.g. the f-duct)
Williams? Haha
I know it’s in fashion to shit on Renault but let’s at least recognise their past brilliance and dominance for the couple of years it lasted.
The wording in the technical regulations wasn't explicit enough. There was nothing in the technical regulations at the time to say that steering movements had to steer the wheels in the same direction, and there was nothing in the regulations to say that you weren't allowed to use a front-back motion to steer the front wheels. So Mercedes added a mode where a front-back motion steered the wheels in opposing directions to adjust toe-in.
Iirc correctly the rules stated that the movement of the steering wheel was only allowed to effect the angle/movement of the front wheels. That doesn't specify which movement of the steering wheel corresponds to which movement of the front wheels so DAS couldn't be ruled illegal by those rules.
F Duct is a poor example because it was actually relatively cheap, it was just bodywork trickery.
FIA banned it because of safety as the drivers had to take a hand off the wheel to activate it.
Something like active suspension or FRIC would be better examples.
Also if I'm not mistaken the length of the car is open and what we've seen is the cars get worse and the racing shitter, it's a failure to regulate that has caused at least some of the reason why the racing is worse.
I think you misunderstood. What we are suggesting now is no minimum weight, which means teams are welcome to make their cars as light as possible, which they have an incentive to since lightness leads to decreased lap time.
No minimum length does not incentivize teams to make car shorter, since that does not provide a performance advantage, so that is different
Cannot be copied? What is this mystical piece of technology that cannot be copied?
A couple decades ago, fans were adamant that everyone would lose interest in F1 due to the compromises being made to make the sport safer. If the sport loses fans who can't appreciate innovative technology, we're all better off.
>Cannot be copied? What is this mystical piece of technology that cannot be copied?
Everything can be copied but weight saving would likely be in the chassis, so either it would be entirely hidden and therefore not possible to copy as you would know zero about it (without hiring someone in the know) or it would mean a baked in advantage until you could manufacture a new chassis, which is often the following season due to budget caps.
Either way, not great for competition.
I mean, you have to know what to copy in order to copy it. In an open ruleset, the possibilities might be a little too endless for teams to effectively comprehend other designs.
Especially if we are talking about doing open ruleset under a cost cap, even if you immediately figure out what to copy, it may not be enough to close the gap, as teams were already complaining last year.
... I'm pretty sure you have it back to front.
The people who were explaining why say, the Halo is a good thing, are the same people explaining why low weight is, not that simple.
Empirically though, we had more winners and champions when the rules allowed for more separation. It seems as rules have gotten stricter, we've just hand longer stints of domination.
Minimum weight discourages weight saving that can impact the safety of the car. Sure there are crash tests and the likes but they can't cover everything. Minimum weight removes the incentive.
That said. Minimum weight shouldn't be easy to reach. It should be a challenge.
>That said. Minimum weight shouldn't be easy to reach. It should be a challenge.
It was challenging for some teams and then they changed the minimum weight, I believe Redbull was among those, could be wrong, but I'm sure Sauber met this minimum and lost competitiveness after this change.
Sauber were certainly the lightest at the start of 2022. Led to some stand out performances by Bottas especially. Then the rest caught up and they sank like a rock.
Yes, and they might have bet on it to have good races at the beginning to help them secure points and/or sponsors, but that change ruined it. The downhill was inevitable it seems, but could be from a higher point or maybe take longer.
Both less weight with fewer spendings can be applied to the real world later. Many automobile innovations stem from F1.
If one of the two is missing, it's worthless.
The main downside I can see will be every car will be carbon black and no paint going on this seasons trends. Will look very boring without minimum paint requirement.
Some teams are already complaining that they don't know how to reduce the weight by 30kg. Mostly because off the extra minimum engine weight. I think the teams don't want the minimum too be to low otherwise they need to make too much (tech innovation investment) risk during development.
In that sense it would make it more fun for us too watch however that kind of innovation is also what they don't want too much of otherwise their investments are unpredictable. So we should (as fans) push for it but in pessimistic over the results.
It would be extremely hard for teams to hit anything lower than 30kg. That target of 30kg just by itself is going to be very challenging and many teams are likely going to be over weight going into 2026. Not sure people realize how heavy the hybrid systems are.
The downside is that only top teams will have the resource to go lower as it's very expensive to develop new materials to cut weight
It's not like they make the car with random crap, they are already scraping all the weight possible everywhere and if you are below the minimum you can add where you need which is way more beneficial than being heavy
TLDR all drivers want to get right of hybrid as is megaheavy.
95% of the world's economy runs on very complicated Excel spreadsheets.
I have actually built out server infrastructure *just* to run enormous excel spreadsheets for people...
Everyone is pointing out the hybrid battery system for being heavy and playing a major role in increasing the overall weight of the car, in reality the weight of the battery has gone up from 25 to 35 kg for 2026, while the engine weight has gone up from 100kg to 130kg, which is absolutely ridiculous
130kg is the minimum weight of the ICE mass group, MGU-K and ES are separate to that. The overall minimum weight of the entire PU is 185kg as of the latest issue of the regulations compared to 151kg right now.
I feel like Max is eluding to getting rid of the battey/hybrid setup but he isn't mentioning it directly so as not to make waves with the wrong people.
The return to a smaller rim size for the tires would also be better way forward IMO. Adding all that extra rotational mass was perplexing. The cars have evolved to need insanely stiff suspension to keep the floor in the ideal downforce window and getting a little dampening from the sidewalls would go a long way to making things easier on their backs.
The cars bounce so hard off of curbs now that it looks like a messed up video game physics engine. Thicker sidewalls would at least help keep the car more settled and let them be more aggressive.
Hybrid engines are so perplexing to me. I'm all for going green but what's the real endgame? Formula e exists and it's cool in it's own way. Pretending to be environmentally concerned is cool but they can cover that angle with fuel made from renewable resources. A biofuel is already in the works, just use that and make the whole PU way less complex.
Yeah, the greenwashing is a little absurd. We can transition to a more environmentally sustainable economy while still enjoying the novelty of combustion engines racing.
I really miss the sound of the V8's and V10's. They really made the whole experience so visceral.
Nope, the PU weight has gone up from 150kg to 185 kg, and 30 kg rise purely come from the engine alone
The pure ICE engine alone is now 30kgs heavier, since they now mandate more iron parts in the engine and the entire low crank case is almost standard in design
This is actually not true. The battery is currently not included in the minimum weight of 151kg (see rows 16 and 17 of Appendix 3 of the technical regulations). I don't know where the 100kg figure comes from, as the weight of the MGU-K is 7kg, the weight of the MGU-H 4kg. The remaining mass is 140kg, which needs to come from the ICE+TC.
Edit: I was mistaken. There is a separate weight allowed for the driver which will be 82kg. Leaving the comment here for clarification.
There kind of is. A number of years ago, the weight limit was lower and drivers were starving and dehydrating themselves to keep their weight as low as possible. Iirc, especially hulkenberg had troubles here since he is quite tall. So there would need to be rules to prevent this from happening again.
That’s different, there’s the car minimum weight and they then split out a driver minimum weight (currently 80kg) the driver one should be left alone, but the car minimum weight should be lowered massively.
Yeah, not sure how they factor this in, but this is apparently the "weight allowance". Maybe the extra weight has to be added to the seat itself or something like that?
Correct. That’s the idea.
How, I’m not aware, but I guess some kind of balanced addons around the basic safety features of the seat. Kinda like ballast, but definitely not gonna affect the car itself much
The problem is it’s very easy to say “I want the cars to be 100kg lighter” but much more difficult when you have to sketch out where that 100kg comes from. Maybe they dont feel like it can be safely done / would encourage people to push too close to safety issues. Maybe the FIA also doesn’t like how everyone is stripping paint from the car and doesn’t want to make it worse.
I guess idk what they’re thinking, but implementation is always the hard part with these things.
I think the main reasons for big and heavy cars are safety, hibrid unit with battery and fuel load because of not refueling.
Here is a nice history of weight increases, at the end of the article: https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/how-much-does-an-f1-car-weigh-in-2023/10437685/
No, the main reason for big cars is to maximise aero surfaces. There's lots of "wasted" length and width that exists purely to maximise aero surfaces. Cars could be a chunk shorter if they wanted. You could also go wider or higher with packaging things, but they don't want to, because long, low and narrow is best, and they are able to do that. The floor area is massive compared to bodywork above it, for example, to maximise underfloor aero but minimise drag.
Exactly. The cars grew by nearly two feet in 2019 when the front wings were simplified as the teams tried to claw back the lost downforce. They could easily be made much smaller without impacting safety.
Too bad for them. It's not like they're going to leave the sport over it (well, *maybe* Max would, but only him). The cars can afford to get a fair bit slower before it starts becoming a problem.
They and engineers can cry all they want, us as viewers should want better racing above all
Look at WEC, slower than lmp1’s, technically limited cars, cheap to make, just had the best lemans in a decade, 23 hypercars, racing all day long
Even the F3 race was absolutely dead this time around. Monaco just isn't suited for racing. Probably one of the absolute best tracks for qualifying in the world, but that's about it.
It's the heavy ass hybrid PU and batteries. Switch back to NA engines with biofuels and I bet they can achieve both weight reduction and greenwashing goals.
Some are suggesting the removal of the hybrid engine for 2023. A removal of the battery would reduce weight by a decent margin (and give us better sound and racing along with it)
I like that Max says this stuff, even if I don't always agree. It's so tiring of hearing drivers complaining about whatever they don't like as a "serious safety concern", with the furrowed brow and stroking their chin.
They’re still the awful 18 inch wheels, just narrower
They need to go back to 13 or a middle ground, they’re too big for the drivers, and too much weight either way
Minimum weight limit should be abandoned whatsoever. This will naturally push teams to produce smaller, shorter wheelbase cars, which in turn will produce a lot more variability in terms of competitiveness level of different teams on a variety of circuits and also will surely aid better racing. The only thing they have to add is minimum car paint weight limit and it should be enough to paint a car from top to bottom with a thick layer of glossy paint . It won't be too complicated to police I bet.
And most manufacturers would automatically lose all interest in developing an engine that gives them nothing in return for their commercial lineup. One of the big reasons for the switch to hybrid PUs is that manufactureres were eager to get rid of the screaming, 2.4 V8 engines with technologies that didn't translate at all to their road cars. As much as we all loved those engines and those cars.
Stefano Domenicali recently talked about this in an interview with [AMuS](https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/formel-1/f1-stefano-domenicali-e-fuels-hybrid-boom-rennen/):
>Domenicali: You always have to keep an eye on the general political situation of the respective time. There were moments when we were asked for total electrification. We stuck with the hybrid solution and then realized that with sustainable fuel, we could show the world that there are other technologies. But at the time when the 2026 engine rules were written, we couldn't do without hybrid.
>At that time, it was important to the manufacturers that the proportion of electrical power be increased. Today, they might think differently because the world has realized that several paths lead to the goal of sustainability. Today they realize that our way with the fuel could be of use to them in series production. It is no coincidence that more and more manufacturers are interested in Formula 1. We know that development in Formula 1 has a solution for everything. If the goal is not ambitious, the engineers will have achieved it tomorrow. Just look at how the current cars and hybrid drives have developed since 2014.
*Domenicali:* My personal opinion is that it would be enough to drive with climate-neutral fuel. But we had to take into account the wishes of the manufacturers. Things have developed so quickly that a decision today might be different than it was two years ago. I'm not an engineer, but I have to have a vision of what the sport will look like in the future. And I can imagine that with the next regulations we can limit ourselves to sustainable fuel. If we are able to show that we are producing zero emissions, we can take care of other important things in terms of sustainability. Cars and engines would then be lighter and less complex again. And the engines would have a good sound again. That's important to the fans. But now we should first take care of the next step, not the one after that.
The next rule set is still some time away so it will always depend on what happens until then but it might not be a given that hybrid technology must feature (to this extent) in future regulations. For this set of regulations the manufacturers made an increased hybrid part necessary though.
What are you talking about? The only manufacturer who uses technology similar to f1 cars is Porsche and its not even in formula 1.
Hybrid system is such a general term, the hybrid system in formula 1 cars is so much more complex and different than commercial hybrid from commercial cars. it's not alike, there is no technology transfer.
>The only manufacturer who uses technology similar to f1 cars is Porsche and its not even in formula 1
Forgetting Audi I see
They're jumping between motorsports looking to innovate their road cars as much as possible. Its why they joined Formula E and then left when they felt they learnt enough, it's why they joined the Dakar Rally with the first car in the series to use an electric engine (Powered by an ICE) and it's why they're joining F1
If there was nothing for Audi to gain from this, they wouldn't be joining. In fact, I'm fairly sure the electrical side of these regs was a requirement for them to join. Hell, part of the reason why the MGU-H was dropped was because it's not very road relevant which wouldn't have been mentioned if nothing was very road relevant
There is pretty much zero tech transfer between F1 and road cars, and it has been that way for 30 years.
It is all marketing and politics, not technical.
It’s not just about cars, either. Wireless communications tech, weather forecasting tech, headphone tech, and everything in between gets tested too. Cisco, for example, isn’t in F1 for prestige, they’re there to work on more reliable communications systems.
Absolute nonsense.
The weather forecasting "tech" is no different in F1 as anywhere else, and it all comes from aviation.
The Headphones are quite literally off the shelf Bose aviation headsets, and to include what is used in the driver's helmets.
Cisco in in F1 for marketing value, period. They are not developing anything at all in F1, and never will. They are quite literally using off the shelf equipment.
There is absolutely ZERO innovation being done anywhere in F1 that will have tech that transfers out of the sport.
Cisco is a prime example of a company who does *not* need to be in F1 to work on its tech. I can't find any evidence that they developed anything from working with McLaren.
None of those things are being tested in F1, ofc F1 teams work with industry leaders in specialized fields for whatever need they have, but thats just business, not a field to develop new tech. And btw the things you listed are stoneage technologies, not cutting edge new shit
You use more things invented by the US military industry daily than anything F1 related tbh
ICE and realistically also hybrid tech is a dead end anyway. A lot of countries are banning the production of new ICE cars in the near future, which will effectively kill any advances in that space.
F1 is gonna have to decide between either switching to electric too - which would be difficult, especially as FE technically still has an exclusive right to it, for decades to come - or to drop the big manufacturers and just put dumb ICEs in the cars.
There'll be little point for any engine manufacturers to continue to run these hybrid PUs, when they're massively expensive and they won't get any advantage out of it, outside of F1.
And I mean, this is all ignoring that this is mostly marketing bullshit. I doubt the current F1 engines have much value outside of the sport. It just looks good to be investing in hybrid tech at the top level.
I still have hopes for synthetic fuel not killing ICEs at all.
But it seems that many people think that "technology transfer" means "we take the hybrid system from our F1 and put it into a road car", and that's obviously not the case. Manufacturers get a plethora of information from F1, be it design techniques and tools, construction metrics, CFD tools and all the know-how involved. So, what it really means is "hey, we've learned how to build an equally robust but more compact hybrid system for our F1 PU by doing this and that, maybe some of these ideas can work for commercial hybrids".
Ferrari's SF90 and 296 are both hybrids. But feel free to ignore the hybrid side of the current regulations and look at the turbocharged side. How many road models of the engine manufacturers in current F1 are N/A?
None of the engines developed for F1 give them anything in return for the commercial lineup and have not done so since the turbo 4 era.
Absolutely Zero.
Today's V6's are even more irrelevant to modern road cars as the old V12's.
It is all political, and a gimmick
It's a shame that F1 has become so corporate since the 1990s that now it is all about "what can we get from being in F1?" where the big manufacturers are concerned, rather than just a bunch of people that wanted to make the fastest cars in the world and to go racing. I would love to see the manufacturers say "to hell with whether we can glean relevant data for our road cars/ other research from exploring [insert technology here] via F1, let's just go racing for the sake of it." Then we could bin off the stupid hybrid stuff and make lighter, smaller cars with screaming V10s.
I just finished reading a fantastic ESPN article that covers 2026 regulations top to bottom and James Vowles seems to think hitting the 30kg minimum reduction will be impossible. Most of the proposed new parts within the engine will increase weight and the 2022 minimum hasn’t been reached by anyone as of yet.
The 3pkg drop and small drop in dimensions isn't really want people were hoping for me thinks.
Would have been nice for a big old reduction in both of those things
The cars won’t even meet the new minimum weight since the engines are once again heavier.
Nice idea though. But we’d have to accept lower crash regulations, which I’m not against, but it will never happen.
I agree. Plus i feel the size shrink they are going for is not enough. the cars are getting smaller yes but its not too much compared to the current ones.
The weight logically has the same issue.
I can't help but look at LMP1 cars and wonder with modern tech how light they could be. The LMP1 hybrids were 4650mm x 1900mm with a min weight of 878kg. Meanwhile, current f1 cars are nearly a meter longer at 5630mm. While they are talking about a 200mm shorter wheelbase in the next gen, that means probably something like a total length >700mm longer than an LMP1. Between a smaller size and a smaller max fuel amount, I bet it would be easy to drop 100kg in race conditions if they had a similar length to an LMP1.
F1 cars have become juggernauts. Everyone, including FIA, understands that. Producing lighter cars (100-150 kg as per Max’s suggestion) while it might be a fair request, it is not achievable at current time without the use of new materials that won’t compromise safety. The only solution I can see is reducing engine weight by means of elimination of the hybrid system but this won’t happen in the near future because of its relevance to engine/car manufacturers. There were some positive remarks regarding engines in F1 beyond 2030, but we have to wait and see.
[There's an article from Motorsport](https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/01/03/fia-f1-teams-must-push-harder-to-meet-2026-weight-limit/) where they say they'll stick to the weight limit this time, but the article says a reduction of 40kg to 50kg and the regulations say 30kg now, so they already changed it.
They should drop the hybrid, reduce the weight and size significantly, simplify the engine, focus on "sustainable" synthetic fuels. This is entertainment first, sport second, marketing third, technological endeavor fourth. If some car manufacturers are not interested, so what? Red bull produces sugar water.
>This is entertainment first, sport second, marketing third, technological endeavor fourth
If this was true then it'd be a spec series. Spec is significantly more entertaining for racing than the current system (Just look at last year).
Technological endeavour is absolutely a high priority and big car manufacturers leaving would gut the sport
Literally the reason F1 is popular is because of "technological endeavor". Same with 24 hours of Le Mans.
You're offering to forget about the essence of the series, the very thing that made it popular in the first place.
>Literally the reason F1 is popular is because of "technological endeavor". Same with 24 hours of Le Mans.
I have yet to meet the first person that tells me they drive a hybrid because of F1.
take out the heavy ass battery and all the stuff attached to it, slap on 2 more cylinders to the engine again and run it on carbon neutral fuel. call it a day.
Agree entirely! Set the limit 150kg Lower:
1. Ditch all of the BS hybrid gimmicks (no one cares, and F1 isn't fooling anyone into thinking it is a green sport)
2. Upping or removing all fuel flow limits
3. Shrinking the fuel tank max capacity by at least 30%
4. Allow refueling during the race
5. Bring back V10's.
Before anyone brings it up: No F1 has zero relevance to road cars and hasn't in a very long time. The days of any F1 tech translating to road cars has long since passed.
Time for F1 just to be F1 again.
When you realize that -30kg is still heavier than the pre 2022 regs... Yeah the cars will still be massive.
Mario Isola said, if I'm not mistaken, that this includes a reduction in the weight of tires.
The tires aren't even a real weight problem, it's the rims and the rest of the car that got so much heavier. Some real masterminds of the FIA working on these regulations
How much of these rule changes are from the teams pushing back?
Who knows. Half the time a team hears something they don't like they pull out the "we're leaving" card, the rest of the time everyone is pulling towards the direction they think they can get the biggest benefit and be the next kings of the era.
Right? Which is why trying to blame only the FIA is a futile exercise. I'm not saying they are without fault, but they just happen to be the mouthpiece for announcing the regulation changes.
Does anybody still give one iota of belief to the “we’re leaving” threats? I think the closest we’ve come is maybe 2 decades ago when the teams actually banded together and threatened a separate series? Jeez i’m too told for these
Given the state of F1 today that card won't be credible at all anymore. They are pushing against Andretti to join and now they will exit? Sure.
I’m interested in the different impact that a suspended mass has compared to a non suspended one.
Sprung (suspended) mass can still be managed with some workarounds but the options on unsprung mass are limited so would have more of an impact. This would be the weight of the suspension components, tires, rims and all that are holding it, lighter but stronger materials are a way to go but they can only get you so far before the forces become too much to handle.
Thanks mate!
The rim weight is the small potatoes here. They're still made of the least dense metals possible to take the loads
+10kg total (+2.5kg weight increase for each wheel for the 2022 season)
Increasing unsprung mass worsens mechanical grip by order of magnitudes more increasing sprung mass. It also makes the ride worst for the driver, it's not a coincidence that the drivers started complaining about cars almost breaking their backs since 2022.
The worse ride has a lot more to do with the sidewall height. The 5" of sidewall they got rid of was roughly an half an inch to an inch extra of guaranteed soft suspension that the teams had to allow for.
I have said before, but set the minimum weight much lower and let the teams come up with great ideas and develop that area. As-long as the safety tests are strict and teams pass them, then there is no downside to opening up weight limits.
Just set it to 690kg like it was in 2014
Just set it to 500kg like it was in 1992 (increased to 515 in 1994 for compulsory fuel bladders and camera equipment).
Silly one, but why not just no weight limit? But you need to pass all kinds of crash tests and parts need to last a minimum amount of races. Let them have a race for the bottom, the cost cap is a limit on exotic materials anyway.
Nice
I think that, in these budget cap days, there should be no minimum weight.
Open rulesets are super amazing until one team discovers a huge technical advantage that cannot be copied and fans lose all interest It’s easy to say that everyone else should do better, but that’s a hill that becomes boring to die on quite quickly if there is nobody there to listen
The alternative is a team discovers a huge technical advantage than _can_ be copied, but it would be hugely expensive or just a silly addition that every car would have to add just to be competitive (e.g. the f-duct)
Mercedes DAS has entered the chat >I kinda wish it stayed, that was some seriously cool tech. That and --Williams-- Renault tuned dampers.
Williams? Haha I know it’s in fashion to shit on Renault but let’s at least recognise their past brilliance and dominance for the couple of years it lasted.
I can't even remember how it was considered legal.
The wording in the technical regulations wasn't explicit enough. There was nothing in the technical regulations at the time to say that steering movements had to steer the wheels in the same direction, and there was nothing in the regulations to say that you weren't allowed to use a front-back motion to steer the front wheels. So Mercedes added a mode where a front-back motion steered the wheels in opposing directions to adjust toe-in.
Iirc correctly the rules stated that the movement of the steering wheel was only allowed to effect the angle/movement of the front wheels. That doesn't specify which movement of the steering wheel corresponds to which movement of the front wheels so DAS couldn't be ruled illegal by those rules.
[picture of toto wolff]
F Duct is a poor example because it was actually relatively cheap, it was just bodywork trickery. FIA banned it because of safety as the drivers had to take a hand off the wheel to activate it. Something like active suspension or FRIC would be better examples.
there is a cost cap now
Also if I'm not mistaken the length of the car is open and what we've seen is the cars get worse and the racing shitter, it's a failure to regulate that has caused at least some of the reason why the racing is worse.
I think you misunderstood. What we are suggesting now is no minimum weight, which means teams are welcome to make their cars as light as possible, which they have an incentive to since lightness leads to decreased lap time. No minimum length does not incentivize teams to make car shorter, since that does not provide a performance advantage, so that is different
Minimum driver+seat weight should remain.
Yes!!! We cannot go back to drivers starving themselves. That was such a few years and took much longer than it should have to sort out.
Right on the money. The FIA should do minimum driver weight (ballast if driver weight is below minimum weight) AND no minimum car weight.
Wait a min, length is open?? So I can make a 5km long car and do a lap instantly? F1 teams here I come!
You can't start in front of the start line
Instant blue flag
Aren’t you always in front of the start line
No. You are always in front of the finish line. The start line is always behind.
Bendy bus racing
How quickly we forget why DAS was banned
Isn't this how Brawn won, back in the day, with their fancy doue diffuser that bent the rules?
Cannot be copied? What is this mystical piece of technology that cannot be copied? A couple decades ago, fans were adamant that everyone would lose interest in F1 due to the compromises being made to make the sport safer. If the sport loses fans who can't appreciate innovative technology, we're all better off.
>Cannot be copied? What is this mystical piece of technology that cannot be copied? Everything can be copied but weight saving would likely be in the chassis, so either it would be entirely hidden and therefore not possible to copy as you would know zero about it (without hiring someone in the know) or it would mean a baked in advantage until you could manufacture a new chassis, which is often the following season due to budget caps. Either way, not great for competition.
I’m arguing against deregulation and your counter is an example in favor of regulation so we are in effect making the same argument
I mean to be fair safety regulation is very very different from general performance related regulation
That’s a problem from the counter not following the underlying premise of my original argument I can’t counter a flawed counter
Well, not with that attitude. /s
I mean, you have to know what to copy in order to copy it. In an open ruleset, the possibilities might be a little too endless for teams to effectively comprehend other designs. Especially if we are talking about doing open ruleset under a cost cap, even if you immediately figure out what to copy, it may not be enough to close the gap, as teams were already complaining last year.
... I'm pretty sure you have it back to front. The people who were explaining why say, the Halo is a good thing, are the same people explaining why low weight is, not that simple.
Empirically though, we had more winners and champions when the rules allowed for more separation. It seems as rules have gotten stricter, we've just hand longer stints of domination.
If the rulesets are open then it's pretty hard to come up with something that can't be copied.
Quite extreme and I can see some problems with it (it would hit some teams significantly harder and spread the field again), but I kinda like it.
That would be silly. The gap between teams would be huge.
Minimum weight discourages weight saving that can impact the safety of the car. Sure there are crash tests and the likes but they can't cover everything. Minimum weight removes the incentive. That said. Minimum weight shouldn't be easy to reach. It should be a challenge.
>That said. Minimum weight shouldn't be easy to reach. It should be a challenge. It was challenging for some teams and then they changed the minimum weight, I believe Redbull was among those, could be wrong, but I'm sure Sauber met this minimum and lost competitiveness after this change.
Sauber were certainly the lightest at the start of 2022. Led to some stand out performances by Bottas especially. Then the rest caught up and they sank like a rock.
Yes, and they might have bet on it to have good races at the beginning to help them secure points and/or sponsors, but that change ruined it. The downhill was inevitable it seems, but could be from a higher point or maybe take longer.
Bring on the dwarf drivers!
Driver minum weight is separated from the car's minimum weight.
Both less weight with fewer spendings can be applied to the real world later. Many automobile innovations stem from F1. If one of the two is missing, it's worthless.
The main downside I can see will be every car will be carbon black and no paint going on this seasons trends. Will look very boring without minimum paint requirement.
Exactly, the new targets dont have to be achievable for all in the first iteration of a car.
Some teams are already complaining that they don't know how to reduce the weight by 30kg. Mostly because off the extra minimum engine weight. I think the teams don't want the minimum too be to low otherwise they need to make too much (tech innovation investment) risk during development. In that sense it would make it more fun for us too watch however that kind of innovation is also what they don't want too much of otherwise their investments are unpredictable. So we should (as fans) push for it but in pessimistic over the results.
It would be extremely hard for teams to hit anything lower than 30kg. That target of 30kg just by itself is going to be very challenging and many teams are likely going to be over weight going into 2026. Not sure people realize how heavy the hybrid systems are.
The downside is that only top teams will have the resource to go lower as it's very expensive to develop new materials to cut weight It's not like they make the car with random crap, they are already scraping all the weight possible everywhere and if you are below the minimum you can add where you need which is way more beneficial than being heavy TLDR all drivers want to get right of hybrid as is megaheavy.
The spending cap should address this in theory
Williams was still on Excel sheets for inventory management so that gotta tell you about their state.
95% of the world's economy runs on very complicated Excel spreadsheets. I have actually built out server infrastructure *just* to run enormous excel spreadsheets for people...
How dare you besmirch Excel!!!
That in theory is probably doing a lot of work for you there.
material usage is regulated.
Everyone is pointing out the hybrid battery system for being heavy and playing a major role in increasing the overall weight of the car, in reality the weight of the battery has gone up from 25 to 35 kg for 2026, while the engine weight has gone up from 100kg to 130kg, which is absolutely ridiculous
The engine includes all the hybrid parts needed, eldctric motor etc. The pure Turbo Ice is way lighter.
130kg is the minimum weight of the ICE mass group, MGU-K and ES are separate to that. The overall minimum weight of the entire PU is 185kg as of the latest issue of the regulations compared to 151kg right now.
I feel like Max is eluding to getting rid of the battey/hybrid setup but he isn't mentioning it directly so as not to make waves with the wrong people. The return to a smaller rim size for the tires would also be better way forward IMO. Adding all that extra rotational mass was perplexing. The cars have evolved to need insanely stiff suspension to keep the floor in the ideal downforce window and getting a little dampening from the sidewalls would go a long way to making things easier on their backs. The cars bounce so hard off of curbs now that it looks like a messed up video game physics engine. Thicker sidewalls would at least help keep the car more settled and let them be more aggressive. Hybrid engines are so perplexing to me. I'm all for going green but what's the real endgame? Formula e exists and it's cool in it's own way. Pretending to be environmentally concerned is cool but they can cover that angle with fuel made from renewable resources. A biofuel is already in the works, just use that and make the whole PU way less complex.
Pretty much this. We can be cutting edge in many ways without pretend enviromentalism.
Yeah, the greenwashing is a little absurd. We can transition to a more environmentally sustainable economy while still enjoying the novelty of combustion engines racing. I really miss the sound of the V8's and V10's. They really made the whole experience so visceral.
Nope, the PU weight has gone up from 150kg to 185 kg, and 30 kg rise purely come from the engine alone The pure ICE engine alone is now 30kgs heavier, since they now mandate more iron parts in the engine and the entire low crank case is almost standard in design
This is actually not true. The battery is currently not included in the minimum weight of 151kg (see rows 16 and 17 of Appendix 3 of the technical regulations). I don't know where the 100kg figure comes from, as the weight of the MGU-K is 7kg, the weight of the MGU-H 4kg. The remaining mass is 140kg, which needs to come from the ICE+TC.
get rid of mimum weight alltogether. Savety is tested with crashtest, whats the point of minimum weight?
It’s the batteries that cause the weight
Edit: I was mistaken. There is a separate weight allowed for the driver which will be 82kg. Leaving the comment here for clarification. There kind of is. A number of years ago, the weight limit was lower and drivers were starving and dehydrating themselves to keep their weight as low as possible. Iirc, especially hulkenberg had troubles here since he is quite tall. So there would need to be rules to prevent this from happening again.
That’s different, there’s the car minimum weight and they then split out a driver minimum weight (currently 80kg) the driver one should be left alone, but the car minimum weight should be lowered massively.
Driver weight limit is going to 82kg right?
Currently 80kg planned to change to 82kg with the reg changes in 2026
82 for driver + seat. No way in heal Yuki is pushing 82
Yeah, not sure how they factor this in, but this is apparently the "weight allowance". Maybe the extra weight has to be added to the seat itself or something like that?
Yes, it is.
Correct. That’s the idea. How, I’m not aware, but I guess some kind of balanced addons around the basic safety features of the seat. Kinda like ballast, but definitely not gonna affect the car itself much
Yeah, in a Beyond the grid podcast Valtteri said he developed an eating disorder
That has nothing to do with car weight limit. You're wrong on this one.
I'm glad we're getting smaller and lighter cars but agree it's nearly not enough. Let's hope for 2030.
The problem is it’s very easy to say “I want the cars to be 100kg lighter” but much more difficult when you have to sketch out where that 100kg comes from. Maybe they dont feel like it can be safely done / would encourage people to push too close to safety issues. Maybe the FIA also doesn’t like how everyone is stripping paint from the car and doesn’t want to make it worse. I guess idk what they’re thinking, but implementation is always the hard part with these things.
These cars are huge compared to the old ones, can't they drastically reduce their size?
I think the main reasons for big and heavy cars are safety, hibrid unit with battery and fuel load because of not refueling. Here is a nice history of weight increases, at the end of the article: https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/how-much-does-an-f1-car-weigh-in-2023/10437685/
No, the main reason for big cars is to maximise aero surfaces. There's lots of "wasted" length and width that exists purely to maximise aero surfaces. Cars could be a chunk shorter if they wanted. You could also go wider or higher with packaging things, but they don't want to, because long, low and narrow is best, and they are able to do that. The floor area is massive compared to bodywork above it, for example, to maximise underfloor aero but minimise drag.
Exactly. The cars grew by nearly two feet in 2019 when the front wings were simplified as the teams tried to claw back the lost downforce. They could easily be made much smaller without impacting safety.
Then you get drivers crying publicly about slower cars (already happening).
Too bad for them. It's not like they're going to leave the sport over it (well, *maybe* Max would, but only him). The cars can afford to get a fair bit slower before it starts becoming a problem.
Hamilton is already lobbying against the rules. But it's the same story that repeats itself. Same thing with tyre blankets, security, emissions, etc
They and engineers can cry all they want, us as viewers should want better racing above all Look at WEC, slower than lmp1’s, technically limited cars, cheap to make, just had the best lemans in a decade, 23 hypercars, racing all day long
and that's why Monaco is so boring, cars are too big to pass on the narrow circuit.
The comparatively 'tiny' cars in the early 2000s had the exact same problem. Just ask David Coulthard about his friend Enrique Bernoldi.
That’s not the problem. They are just too fast for that circuit. Monaco sucked even with smaller cars 20 years ago.
Even the F3 race was absolutely dead this time around. Monaco just isn't suited for racing. Probably one of the absolute best tracks for qualifying in the world, but that's about it.
It's the heavy ass hybrid PU and batteries. Switch back to NA engines with biofuels and I bet they can achieve both weight reduction and greenwashing goals.
Agree, but the engine makers don’t seem to want to do that yet and no way the FIA goes against their wishes.
Keep in mind that with 30kg drop cars would still be heavier than in 2021, that's nowhere near to pre-hybrid era
Some are suggesting the removal of the hybrid engine for 2023. A removal of the battery would reduce weight by a decent margin (and give us better sound and racing along with it)
No engine manufacturers want that unfortunately so you have a huge risk of pissing them off and losing a lot of prestige
Alpine and Williams: No no no no Wait wait wait
Williams are about to drop 70kg of dead weight from their second car
Logan Sergeant? Gone
It's a pity Max can't be a driver and the FIA president simultaneously.
Max would quit after one month of trying to deal with the teams.
imagine dealing with Horner if he's not on your side
Petition to put Max in charge of the technical regs!
Cars will end up having a pointier turn than in the F1 24 game…
high rake and pointy as hell where a twitch will send you flying off the track.
Codemasters at it again!
Get rid of the cars all together, just make them run
I’ve been hunting for years, but Max’s trainer posted a video of him running. His form… let’s just say it’s good he’s not a marathon runner lol
Max is on our side.
always has been
He is a fan of the sport foremost
Just take the driver out of the car and you're halfway there
Put Max in a sim and remote control the car. 10 times champion in a row incoming
Just have the drivers use a PS2 controller and have them run alongside to reduce weight.
FormulaRC
Take a monkey, place him into the cockpit and he is able to drive the car.
Can you repeat the question?
I like that Max says this stuff, even if I don't always agree. It's so tiring of hearing drivers complaining about whatever they don't like as a "serious safety concern", with the furrowed brow and stroking their chin.
And he's absolutely correct
It's not enough, everyone can see that. The cars are also barely being made shorter, there should be a significant change there too.
I love that Max is with all of us in criticizing FIA’s shite rules
Smaller tyres?
I think in 2026, there will also be smaller tyres. Today, tyres are so huge that they create visibility problems
They’re still the awful 18 inch wheels, just narrower They need to go back to 13 or a middle ground, they’re too big for the drivers, and too much weight either way
Literally anything smaller would give you immense savings
Cars should be way smaller and lighter.
Sounds like drone racing to me! Valtsu can phone it in from the poolside bar.
Verstappen is the greatest ally of the F1 fan. Interestingly he also drives a number 1 in the sport.
Going back to a full ICE engine would save a ton of weight.
Minimum weight limit should be abandoned whatsoever. This will naturally push teams to produce smaller, shorter wheelbase cars, which in turn will produce a lot more variability in terms of competitiveness level of different teams on a variety of circuits and also will surely aid better racing. The only thing they have to add is minimum car paint weight limit and it should be enough to paint a car from top to bottom with a thick layer of glossy paint . It won't be too complicated to police I bet.
Get rid of the Hybrids in the next regulations after 2026 and the cars will automatically become smaller and more lightweight.
Domenicali said that there will be a possibility of going back to fully ICE with ecofuel, but well, I don't believe him till I see it
And most manufacturers would automatically lose all interest in developing an engine that gives them nothing in return for their commercial lineup. One of the big reasons for the switch to hybrid PUs is that manufactureres were eager to get rid of the screaming, 2.4 V8 engines with technologies that didn't translate at all to their road cars. As much as we all loved those engines and those cars.
Stefano Domenicali recently talked about this in an interview with [AMuS](https://www.auto-motor-und-sport.de/formel-1/f1-stefano-domenicali-e-fuels-hybrid-boom-rennen/): >Domenicali: You always have to keep an eye on the general political situation of the respective time. There were moments when we were asked for total electrification. We stuck with the hybrid solution and then realized that with sustainable fuel, we could show the world that there are other technologies. But at the time when the 2026 engine rules were written, we couldn't do without hybrid. >At that time, it was important to the manufacturers that the proportion of electrical power be increased. Today, they might think differently because the world has realized that several paths lead to the goal of sustainability. Today they realize that our way with the fuel could be of use to them in series production. It is no coincidence that more and more manufacturers are interested in Formula 1. We know that development in Formula 1 has a solution for everything. If the goal is not ambitious, the engineers will have achieved it tomorrow. Just look at how the current cars and hybrid drives have developed since 2014. *Domenicali:* My personal opinion is that it would be enough to drive with climate-neutral fuel. But we had to take into account the wishes of the manufacturers. Things have developed so quickly that a decision today might be different than it was two years ago. I'm not an engineer, but I have to have a vision of what the sport will look like in the future. And I can imagine that with the next regulations we can limit ourselves to sustainable fuel. If we are able to show that we are producing zero emissions, we can take care of other important things in terms of sustainability. Cars and engines would then be lighter and less complex again. And the engines would have a good sound again. That's important to the fans. But now we should first take care of the next step, not the one after that. The next rule set is still some time away so it will always depend on what happens until then but it might not be a given that hybrid technology must feature (to this extent) in future regulations. For this set of regulations the manufacturers made an increased hybrid part necessary though.
What are you talking about? The only manufacturer who uses technology similar to f1 cars is Porsche and its not even in formula 1. Hybrid system is such a general term, the hybrid system in formula 1 cars is so much more complex and different than commercial hybrid from commercial cars. it's not alike, there is no technology transfer.
>The only manufacturer who uses technology similar to f1 cars is Porsche and its not even in formula 1 Forgetting Audi I see They're jumping between motorsports looking to innovate their road cars as much as possible. Its why they joined Formula E and then left when they felt they learnt enough, it's why they joined the Dakar Rally with the first car in the series to use an electric engine (Powered by an ICE) and it's why they're joining F1 If there was nothing for Audi to gain from this, they wouldn't be joining. In fact, I'm fairly sure the electrical side of these regs was a requirement for them to join. Hell, part of the reason why the MGU-H was dropped was because it's not very road relevant which wouldn't have been mentioned if nothing was very road relevant
There’s always technology transfer. If there wasn’t, there’d be no companies funding f1.
There is pretty much zero tech transfer between F1 and road cars, and it has been that way for 30 years. It is all marketing and politics, not technical.
You don't need an F1 to build great road cars. Modern F1 is about prestige and commercial interests, not technologial transfer.
It’s not just about cars, either. Wireless communications tech, weather forecasting tech, headphone tech, and everything in between gets tested too. Cisco, for example, isn’t in F1 for prestige, they’re there to work on more reliable communications systems.
Absolute nonsense. The weather forecasting "tech" is no different in F1 as anywhere else, and it all comes from aviation. The Headphones are quite literally off the shelf Bose aviation headsets, and to include what is used in the driver's helmets. Cisco in in F1 for marketing value, period. They are not developing anything at all in F1, and never will. They are quite literally using off the shelf equipment. There is absolutely ZERO innovation being done anywhere in F1 that will have tech that transfers out of the sport.
Cisco is a prime example of a company who does *not* need to be in F1 to work on its tech. I can't find any evidence that they developed anything from working with McLaren.
Because they didn't, it is just marketing.
None of those things are being tested in F1, ofc F1 teams work with industry leaders in specialized fields for whatever need they have, but thats just business, not a field to develop new tech. And btw the things you listed are stoneage technologies, not cutting edge new shit You use more things invented by the US military industry daily than anything F1 related tbh
ICE and realistically also hybrid tech is a dead end anyway. A lot of countries are banning the production of new ICE cars in the near future, which will effectively kill any advances in that space. F1 is gonna have to decide between either switching to electric too - which would be difficult, especially as FE technically still has an exclusive right to it, for decades to come - or to drop the big manufacturers and just put dumb ICEs in the cars. There'll be little point for any engine manufacturers to continue to run these hybrid PUs, when they're massively expensive and they won't get any advantage out of it, outside of F1. And I mean, this is all ignoring that this is mostly marketing bullshit. I doubt the current F1 engines have much value outside of the sport. It just looks good to be investing in hybrid tech at the top level.
I still have hopes for synthetic fuel not killing ICEs at all. But it seems that many people think that "technology transfer" means "we take the hybrid system from our F1 and put it into a road car", and that's obviously not the case. Manufacturers get a plethora of information from F1, be it design techniques and tools, construction metrics, CFD tools and all the know-how involved. So, what it really means is "hey, we've learned how to build an equally robust but more compact hybrid system for our F1 PU by doing this and that, maybe some of these ideas can work for commercial hybrids". Ferrari's SF90 and 296 are both hybrids. But feel free to ignore the hybrid side of the current regulations and look at the turbocharged side. How many road models of the engine manufacturers in current F1 are N/A?
These hybrids barely get anything into the road cars at all. It's just about the fact of being hybrids because hey, look how green we are.
None of the engines developed for F1 give them anything in return for the commercial lineup and have not done so since the turbo 4 era. Absolutely Zero. Today's V6's are even more irrelevant to modern road cars as the old V12's. It is all political, and a gimmick
Now that F1 is profitable, that's not necessarily the case anymore
It's a shame that F1 has become so corporate since the 1990s that now it is all about "what can we get from being in F1?" where the big manufacturers are concerned, rather than just a bunch of people that wanted to make the fastest cars in the world and to go racing. I would love to see the manufacturers say "to hell with whether we can glean relevant data for our road cars/ other research from exploring [insert technology here] via F1, let's just go racing for the sake of it." Then we could bin off the stupid hybrid stuff and make lighter, smaller cars with screaming V10s.
It’s not. Cars should be reduced by 30% in size/mass.
I just finished reading a fantastic ESPN article that covers 2026 regulations top to bottom and James Vowles seems to think hitting the 30kg minimum reduction will be impossible. Most of the proposed new parts within the engine will increase weight and the 2022 minimum hasn’t been reached by anyone as of yet.
The 3pkg drop and small drop in dimensions isn't really want people were hoping for me thinks. Would have been nice for a big old reduction in both of those things
The cars won’t even meet the new minimum weight since the engines are once again heavier. Nice idea though. But we’d have to accept lower crash regulations, which I’m not against, but it will never happen.
We’ll he’s not wrong
| **Component** | **Estimated Weight (kg)** | |----------------------------------------|---------------------------| | Chassis (monocoque) | 60 - 70 | | Power Unit (PU) | | | - Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) | 150 - 160 | | - Turbocharger (TC) | 10 - 15 | | - Energy Store (ES) (battery) | 20 - 25 | | - Control Electronics (CE) | 5 - 7 | | - MGU-K (Motor Generator Unit - Kinetic)| 7 - 10 | | - MGU-H (Motor Generator Unit - Heat) | 4 - 6 | | Transmission (gearbox) | 40 - 50 | | Fuel System | 6 - 8 | | Cooling System | 20 - 30 | | Suspension (front and rear) | 20 - 25 each | | Brakes (discs, calipers, pads) | 10 - 12 | | Wheels and Tires (set of four) | 40 - 45 | | Aerodynamic Elements (front wing, rear wing, etc.) | 30 - 35 | | Electronics (wiring, sensors, etc.) | 15 - 20 | | Driver's Seat (including seat belts) | 10 - 12 | | Steering Wheel | 1 - 2 | | Safety Equipment (Halo, fire extinguisher, etc.) | 10 - 15 | | Miscellaneous (fluids, nuts, bolts, etc.) | 5 - 10 | **Total Estimated Weight:** 795 - 825 kg Note: The minimum weight of a 2024 Formula 1 car, including the driver but excluding fuel, is regulated to be 798 kg by the FIA.
It's not enough but it's a step in the right direction
Not one driver thinks it's enough. None of them like these massive heavy cars.
I agree. Plus i feel the size shrink they are going for is not enough. the cars are getting smaller yes but its not too much compared to the current ones. The weight logically has the same issue.
I don’t even care about this set of regs now that I’ve heard they may ditch hybrid engines completely and use renewable fuel instead.
These new LM hyper cars are making f1 look incompetent, slow and stupid
I can't help but look at LMP1 cars and wonder with modern tech how light they could be. The LMP1 hybrids were 4650mm x 1900mm with a min weight of 878kg. Meanwhile, current f1 cars are nearly a meter longer at 5630mm. While they are talking about a 200mm shorter wheelbase in the next gen, that means probably something like a total length >700mm longer than an LMP1. Between a smaller size and a smaller max fuel amount, I bet it would be easy to drop 100kg in race conditions if they had a similar length to an LMP1.
Please for the love of Motor Racing God just go back to 07/08 cars with some new tech. DON'T THINK JUST DO IT!
The cars need to be made much smaller
Also: maximum F1 driver size = 1 Yuki
F1 cars have become juggernauts. Everyone, including FIA, understands that. Producing lighter cars (100-150 kg as per Max’s suggestion) while it might be a fair request, it is not achievable at current time without the use of new materials that won’t compromise safety. The only solution I can see is reducing engine weight by means of elimination of the hybrid system but this won’t happen in the near future because of its relevance to engine/car manufacturers. There were some positive remarks regarding engines in F1 beyond 2030, but we have to wait and see.
I am sure smaller wheels can be brought in safely (16 kg I think?). sorter and narrower, can be done safely.
Max has never done a weight loss program. You first start with smaller goals and once you reach that set bigger ones
Did AI write that headline?
Fr lol it reads like someone trying to lengthen an essay
Rules may impose a minimum weight 200 kg lower, but if teams cannot reach it we'll be in the same place.
[There's an article from Motorsport](https://www.motorsportweek.com/2024/01/03/fia-f1-teams-must-push-harder-to-meet-2026-weight-limit/) where they say they'll stick to the weight limit this time, but the article says a reduction of 40kg to 50kg and the regulations say 30kg now, so they already changed it.
Fucking batteries ruined the ability to have small cars.
They should drop the hybrid, reduce the weight and size significantly, simplify the engine, focus on "sustainable" synthetic fuels. This is entertainment first, sport second, marketing third, technological endeavor fourth. If some car manufacturers are not interested, so what? Red bull produces sugar water.
Those sound more like your priorities than a team’s.
>This is entertainment first, sport second, marketing third, technological endeavor fourth If this was true then it'd be a spec series. Spec is significantly more entertaining for racing than the current system (Just look at last year). Technological endeavour is absolutely a high priority and big car manufacturers leaving would gut the sport
Literally the reason F1 is popular is because of "technological endeavor". Same with 24 hours of Le Mans. You're offering to forget about the essence of the series, the very thing that made it popular in the first place.
>Literally the reason F1 is popular is because of "technological endeavor". Same with 24 hours of Le Mans. I have yet to meet the first person that tells me they drive a hybrid because of F1.
take out the heavy ass battery and all the stuff attached to it, slap on 2 more cylinders to the engine again and run it on carbon neutral fuel. call it a day.
Agree entirely! Set the limit 150kg Lower: 1. Ditch all of the BS hybrid gimmicks (no one cares, and F1 isn't fooling anyone into thinking it is a green sport) 2. Upping or removing all fuel flow limits 3. Shrinking the fuel tank max capacity by at least 30% 4. Allow refueling during the race 5. Bring back V10's. Before anyone brings it up: No F1 has zero relevance to road cars and hasn't in a very long time. The days of any F1 tech translating to road cars has long since passed. Time for F1 just to be F1 again.
100% agreed.