Formula 1’s governing body and all 11 teams have agreed on a set of targeted adjustments to the 2026 technical and sporting regulations, to be implemented from the Miami Grand Prix on 3 May.
The changes, confirmed on Monday following an online meeting between the FIA, team principals, power unit manufacturer CEOs and Formula One Management, represent the most significant mid-season regulatory intervention in the hybrid era.
The revisions emerged from data gathered across the opening three races and from extensive consultation with drivers, a process that accelerated after the energy harvesting behaviour of the new cars drew criticism for its effect on qualifying performance, race-start safety, and driver workload.
All changes are subject to a World Motor Sport Council e-vote before taking effect, but should be implemented for Miami next week.
The start procedure changes will be formally assessed during the Miami weekend before a final decision on adoption.
Qualifying changes
The central issue the changes address is super-clipping during qualifying laps: the MGU-K behaviour in which cars temporarily exceed their permitted energy deployment rate by drawing on harvested energy beyond the regulated limit.
Under the original rules, the maximum permitted recharge rate was 8MJ, which was creating conditions where drivers spent extended periods harvesting rather than deploying, which undermined the quality of qualifying laps.
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The agreed changes reduce the maximum recharge from 8MJ to 7MJ while simultaneously increasing peak super-clip power from 250kW to 350kW.
According to the FIA statement, the combined effect of the changes targets a maximum super-clip duration of roughly two to four seconds per lap.
The logic is straightforward: by allowing more power to be deployed in a shorter burst, the rules reduce the proportion of any given lap spent in harvesting mode.
In qualifying, where cars were visibly backing off mid-lap in order to build energy for subsequent acceleration zones, drivers should now be able to perform more consistent flat-out driving.
The 350kW deployment figure will also apply in race trim.
Race changes
The race-specific changes address a different concern: the sudden, dramatic closing speeds that have emerged when cars activate the boost system, the mechanism by which the MGU-K supplements ICE output.
Uncapped, boost deployment created situations where following cars could close on a rival at a rate incompatible with safe racing.
From Miami, boost in race conditions will be capped at a net addition of 150kW above the car’s current power level at activation.
MGU-K deployment will be maintained at 350kW in key acceleration zones – corner exit through to braking point, which encompasses overtaking zones – but limited to 250kW elsewhere on the lap.
The intention is to preserve overtaking opportunity where it matters while eliminating the more extreme closing-speed differentials that triggered Oliver Bearman‘s massive crash in the Japanese Grand Prix.
Race start changes
The start changes will be tested in Miami
Grand Prix Photo
Race starts, which have been a specific and serious safety concern, have been addressed separately.
Under the 2026 power architecture, a car that suffers abnormally low acceleration immediately after clutch release presents a big danger to closely following cars whose drivers cannot anticipate or react to the performance differential in time.
The agreed solution is a new “low-power start detection” system.
If a car registers abnormally low acceleration in the moments after the start, an automatic MGU-K deployment will be triggered to bring the minimum acceleration up to a safe threshold.
Critically, the system is designed to confer no sporting advantage as it acts as a safety floor, not a launch aid.
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Affected cars will also trigger flashing rear and lateral warning lights to alert drivers immediately behind.
These start changes will not come into force in Miami but will be tested and evaluated during that weekend, with formal implementation to follow.
An additional correction has been applied to reset the energy counter at the beginning of the formation lap, addressing an identified inconsistency in how energy was accounted for ahead of the start.
Wet conditions changes
Three further changes address safety and visibility in wet weather.
Tyre blanket temperatures for intermediate tyres have been increased in response to driver feedback about grip levels on initial laps.
Maximum ERS deployment in wet conditions will be reduced to limit torque output and improve car control on a low-grip surface, a direct response to concerns raised after incidents in damp conditions early in the season.
Rear light systems have also been simplified to provide cleaner, more consistent visual cues in spray and poor visibility.
