If 2026 feels different, that's because almost everything changed at once. Here's what's new, without the jargon.
The power unit
F1 keeps the 1.6-litre V6 turbo-hybrid, but rebalances it to roughly a 50/50 split between combustion and electrical power — the electric component is roughly tripled. The complex MGU-H is gone, and the cars run on 100% sustainable fuel.
The cars
They're shorter, narrower and lighter — more nimble. The big visual change is active aerodynamics: movable front and rear wings that switch between a low-drag mode on the straights and a high-downforce mode in the corners.
Overtaking
DRS in its old form is gone. In its place is a "Manual Override" / Overtake Mode — a chasing driver within about a second of the car ahead gets an extra burst of deployable electric energy.
New names on the grid
Audi (via Sauber) and Cadillac/GM have joined the grid. It's the most open technical landscape in years — which is exactly why one team running away early (hello, Mercedes) is such a talking point.
