Red Bull’s current dominance in the F1 field has many fans looking forward to the future.
2026 to be exact.
That’s when the sport announces its latest regulation changes. The changes are aimed at reducing the size of the cars, moving to sustainable fuels and improving racing, but many fans believe the introduction of new regulations will reduce the competitive conditions for some of Red Bull’s rivals. I hope they find a way to make it even.
However, according to a recent report, Future regulations may require their own changes.
One of the many changes F1 is expected to introduce in the next set of regulations is “movable aero” aimed at reducing drag on the straights. Nicolas Tombazis, Director of the FIA Single Seater Division, said that in general, We outlined what that means last summer. When meeting with the media.
“There is no doubt that wing incidence on the straights will change to achieve low drag.” He said. “But you will never slow down the vehicle in front by any means. That simply won’t work.”
Tombazis’ comments were preceded by a theory that F1 might introduce an element that effectively slows down the car in front, or so-called “reverse DRS”, to increase overtaking opportunities and increase close races. Ta.
However, Tombazis dismissed that idea and detailed what F1 is aiming for with the 2026 regulations.
“There is an equivalent to current DRS that basically allows following vehicles within certain limits to enter potentially attackable positions.” he added. “What shape that mechanism will take, whether it’s an additional change in the aerodynamic components on the straights, an additional change in the aerodynamic components in the corners, or some of the energy in the engine. ….As for which of the three to choose, we are still doing our best simulations to arrive at the best possible solution.
“What we don’t want is cars basically flying past each other on the straights. What we don’t want is for cars to come close together at braking points and collisions to occur and drivers to show their skills. I hope so.”
As a result, the idea of a movable rear wing configuration that works in conjunction with DRS was born. Then the car will be able to pass “…run in a high-downforce configuration in the corners to provide grip, then switch to a low-drag configuration on the straights to increase straight-line speed.”
However, according to a new report, motorsportthe simulator data revealed some surprising findings.
According to their report, “…when the rear wing was in its lowest-drag configuration and the engine was at full power, the car was almost undriveable. There were multiple instances where I was no longer able to do so.” Minimal curves were achieved without the rear stepping out. ”
one source Said motorsport that The only way to keep the car from spinning in this configuration of the simulator was to drive very carefully and conservatively. “…The lap times were slower than his current F2 car.”
FIA officials have reportedly visited various teams to understand how this is happening in simulators, resulting in changes to the idea of moving aero in the upcoming regulations.According to reports motorsport“…The FIA has decided that the 2026 aerodynamic plan must include both front and rear wings that move in conjunction with each other in order for the car to deliver the expected performance characteristics.”2 Ensuring that the two wings work together should reduce the aerodynamic balance offsets that caused problems in the simulator. ”
Rule changes are nothing new to F1, in fact they are at the heart of the sport.As Joshua Robinson and Jonathan Clegg outline in their excellent book formula:
Even leagues that have made major changes typically experience seismic shifts once a century or so. When American football introduced the forward pass, or the NBA introduced the three-point line, these revisions to the rulebook turned the entire sport upside down. They changed the way the game was played, predictably, unexpectedly, and in completely unthinkable ways, with effects that lasted for decades to come.
F1 does that every few years.
The reason is that while F1 is a competition to be won, it is also a technology problem to be solved. We constantly update to stay at the forefront of elite car development and prevent the competition from falling silent. Change and evolution are the essence of this sport.
Evolution takes time.
And apparently there are several different drafts.
Please note that this is all part of the process and teams and the FIA will go through various revisions before arriving at the final regulations. Still, it’s interesting to see the sport making an effort again to improve racing and make it more exciting for fans.
It remains to be seen what solutions the sport will arrive at, and whether those solutions will achieve the ultimate goal of better racing.
But that’s definitely what fans want.
