Formula 1 arrives at the Miami GP with rule changes for 2026 made to improve safety and the spectacle, and the initial reaction from the drivers was generally positive. Still, the tone in the paddock is cautious, with several names saying the adjustments are just a first step and that the real effect will only appear on the track.
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The package directly affects energy management. The maximum power of the super clipping rises from 250kW to 350kW, while the energy recovery limit in qualifying drops from 8MJ to 7MJ, an attempt to reduce lift-and-coast and the super clipping itself. There were also changes to starts, with the MGU-K now acting to ensure a minimum level of acceleration when there is a slow start, a measure aimed at avoiding large speed differences on the grid.
Pierre Gasly classified the direction as correct, without selling the idea of a revolution. “It’s going in the right direction for the things we are asking for. That’s the most important thing. I don’t think it’s a game changer,” he said, highlighting the “very constructive” communication with the FIA and reminding that safety needs to come before everything else.
Valtteri Bottas followed the same line and emphasized the political balance of the decision. “Makes sense. I think it’s in the right direction,” he said, citing the intention to reduce speed differences and clipping at the end of straights, but noting that big changes mid-season are complicated because you don’t want to “change the order of the teams.”
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Alex Albon said the team tested the new features in the simulator and saw improvement, but without reaching the ideal scenario. “It improves some aspects. Is it totally pure, just driving as fast as possible? No,” he assessed, predicting that the topic should still have new stages after Miami.
Among the most praised points, Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon highlighted the automation in preparing the fast lap. “Now it’s automatic, which simplifies things for us,” said Bearman, recalling that before it was necessary to manually control the throttle opening and even look at the dashboard, something “a bit dangerous.” Ocon reinforced: “It’s not the whole story, but these are small steps for the better.”
Franco Colapinto, Liam Lawson, Fernando Alonso, and Lance Stroll preferred to “wait and see.” Alonso questioned whether the impact will really be big and pointed out that the regulation still tends to “reward going slower in the corners” because of the energy, while Stroll agreed that the adjustments sound like a “band-aid” on a bigger problem and admitted that the sport will have to live with this concept for a few years.
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