The covers are off the cars, the phoney war of testing is coming to an end and later this month the 2026 Formula 1 season gets underway in earnest in Australia. It will be a fascinating contest as teams and drivers get to grips with the latest set of regulations. Unusually the new rules include an overhaul of both the power unit (comprising the V6 turbo engine and MGU-k electric motor) and the chassis and aero design.

The result is the most complex set of regulations the sport has ever come up with and it is for this reason that we have in this issue dedicated a significant amount of space to explaining the changes and how the teams and drivers are coming to terms with them. Already one thing is clear. With a new emphasis on the balance between electrical and ICE power, managing energy efficiently is going to be key to success – the big question is how that will affect the racing on track.

“It is the most complex set of regulations the sport has ever come up with”

Developments and car evolution will be fast and furious so if you want to keep up it is a good idea to sign up to our weekly F1 newsletter in which Mark Hughes explains the latest technical innovations and gives his unique take on all the paddock news. Additionally you can check out our brand new podcast which we have launched to coincide with the 2026 season. It is called the Motor Sport F1 Show with Mark Hughes and can be found on our website and YouTube, as well as other major platforms and apps. In 40 minutes, Mark explains all the week’s most salient F1 developments and answers your questions too.

As far as predictions go for this year’s championship, the Motor Sport office has made theirs but with so much change I’m glad there’s no money riding on the final outcome. The only tentative prediction I will make is that, as Haas boss Ayao Komatsu said last month, “What you see in race one and two will be totally different by the end of the year.”

Joe Dunn, editor
Follow Joe on X @joedunn90