Ferrari expressed strong dissatisfaction with a regulation change implemented by Formula 1 early in the 2026 season. The Italian team believes that the change, made for safety reasons, ended up harming a technical advantage gained in the development of their car.
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These modifications came into effect at the Miami GP and changed the starting procedures, following concerns involving cars that showed very low acceleration immediately after the clutch was released. The FIA introduced a new low power detection system at starts to avoid possible safety risks.
Before the start of the season, Ferrari had blocked attempts to change the rules related to starts. The Maranello team developed its own solution to the problem and managed to turn this into a competitive advantage in the early stages of the championship.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc drew attention in the first races of 2026 for Ferrari’s extremely efficient starts. This happened thanks to the team’s decision to use a smaller turbo in their power unit this year.
Fred Vasseur, head of the Scuderia, stated that Ferrari ended up being penalized precisely for having found an efficient solution within the regulations: “The balance was whether we wanted to gain a tenth per lap or lose five positions at the start? If you ask the engineers, they will choose to have a good start,” he said.
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The executive also recalled that Ferrari had warned the FIA about the issue previously but did not receive support at that time: “I went to the FIA a year ago and we talked about this. We talked at the SAC and also at the PUAC,” said Vasseur. According to him, the entity’s response was clear: “You need to design the car for the regulations, not the regulations for your car.”
Despite this, Vasseur believes that political pressure from part of the grid ended up influencing the rule change: “So, having half the grid, 40% of the grid complaining that it was extremely dangerous was politically very well played, but not very fair,” he said.
Even though displeased, the Ferrari boss acknowledged that the FIA had the authority to act on safety grounds: “It was a decision based on safety. It’s up to them,” he added.
Still, Vasseur emphasized that the Italian team was harmed after investing in the development of the power unit within the originally established rules: “For us it was a development choice and, in a way, they changed the rule at the last minute,” concluded the head of the Italian team.
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