MPH: Doubts over 'science project' 2026 F1 cars are not going away

A week or so ago, there seemed to be something of a PR reaction to Charles Leclerc‘s voiced disappointment in how the 2026 cars are going to feel, with their reduced downforce and increased electrical power. ‘They won’t be that bad once we’ve worked on them’ was the message from the teams. Maybe…

But no sooner had that fire been dampened down than Lance Stroll waded in with some more petrol. He’s not always the most opinionated of drivers, often gives the impression that he’s not got any particular thoughts on any given issue within the sport, like he wishes there was no media asking him what he thinks about anything. But when he does have an opinion, he’s perhaps less beholden to any F1 corporate line than any driver, and on the subject of the ’26 regs, now that he – like Leclerc – has tried a ’26 car in the simulator, he’s quite animated.

“I don’t know if the regs are so exciting,” he said at Silverstone. “It’s a relative game and if you have a fast car then they are exciting…  But the regulations… a bit sad if you ask me.

“I think it’s a bit of a shame F1 is just taking that path of electric energy and we’ve had to shut all the downforce off the cars to support the battery power. It would just be fun to see some light, nimble, fast cars with a lot of downforce and just simplify the whole thing a little bit. Less of an energy, battery, championship science project and more of just a Formula 1 racing championship.”

Part of it is the handling of the cars with the drastic reduction in downforce required to not use up too much battery store (the drag and downforce associated with big wings require exponentially more energy to push the car through the air). Part of it is the usability of the available power and how compromised that might be by the energy recovery and deployment. Another part of it is how the active aero works.

“I don’t know if that’s racing,” says Stroll. “It’s going to be the same for everyone next year. It’s all going to be about who can do that best and I’m sure whoever is doing that best is going to love the new regs. But I’m not a fan of the direction… A lot of the drivers can agree on that. Maybe some of them can’t talk about it for political reasons.

“I think it’s exciting to think about cars that can scream a little bit louder, be a bit lighter and just not depend on, not focus so much on that energy like battery, powertrain that’s not very race-y.”

Leclerc last week commented, “Let’s say it’s not the most enjoyable race car I’ve driven… My hope relies on the fact that it will evolve quite a bit in the next few months, but I think it’s no secret that I think the regulations for next year are going to be probably less enjoyable to drive… But there’s a challenge, and I would like the challenge of maximising a very different car to what it is at the moment. But do I enjoy it? Probably not.”

It remains to be seen if the full extent of their fears will be realised. James Vowles at Williams suggests not. “I think it’s probably fair to say we’re advanced relative to other teams in terms of [’26 simulation]. It gets better, is my comment to Charles. It just kind of gives us an indication of where they are at the moment in terms of their cycle. I actually don’t think the formula for next year is bad at all. I think it’s different.”