The 2026 Formula 1 regulation change has brought all kinds of challenges to the drivers given the cars are now totally different from their predecessors. A chassis, for example, is approximately 32kg lighter with significantly less downforce, while the power unit is much more reliant on electric energy having a near-50:50 split alongside the internal combustion engine.
It is the changes to the engine rules that have perhaps presented the biggest challenge to drivers, because there’s now more to think about - particularly with the battery. It means energy harvesting will have a big say in the action and it’s already well documented how drivers may sometimes downshift on a straight to preserve battery, but a topic that has come up more during this week’s Bahrain pre-season test is how it will impact race starts.
In the past they were seamless, but the removal of the MGU-H has made things tricky because that was the compression spinner, which turned hot exhaust gases into electric energy and helping the acceleration be instantaneous. Now, drivers must rev their engine much higher and for much longer once the clutch has been engaged to overcome turbo lag, but this will potentially result in race starts not looking as perfect as they did before.
“Oh man, it’s complicated,” said Audi youngster Gabriel Bortoleto, after he conducted a practice start in Bahrain. “The 10 second thing and then after five seconds I already lost the count and then engines revving up, gear in and out, and you need to release the clutch. It's quite a mess. It was much easier last year.”
As is the case with anything new though, it’ll just take time and practice to get used to it with Cadillac’s Valtteri Bottas claiming “we will find solutions and it will become more consistent”. Even so, the 36-year-old, who has won 10 grands prix from 246 starts, thinks it could present a big challenge at the Australian season opener in March.
That’s especially due to a five-place grid drop that he will have to serve, which might seem strange given Bottas wasn’t on the 2025 grid. However, a quirk of the previous regulations means he must serve his punishment for colliding with Kevin Magnussen at the last race he contested, which was the 2024 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
“If I'm towards the back of the grid, is there enough time when the light starts to go on to actually get that turbo spinning,” questioned Bottas, whose situation caused the FIA to tweak the regulations meaning a penalty will now be void if not served within 12 months.
“Now, it takes like 10 seconds. So that's one thing we've got to figure out. Normally you get info on the radio when the last car is coming to the end, so that gives you a heads up, but that's something we've got to figure out.”
Revving the engine of course isn’t the only way to overcome turbo lag, but the other option - using the MGU-K, which converts kinetic energy into electrical energy - just isn’t possible for drivers. That’s because the regulations state that the MGU-K cannot be used to prep the turbo on the starting grid and after getaway, it can only be engaged once the car has reached 50mph.
But even if the driver has endured a poor start, they would then be reluctant to use the MGU-K because that entails using up the battery - thus compromising the rest of the lap.
“It's a lot more complicated,” said reigning world champion Lando Norris. “As soon as you start to use any battery to help in any situation, you're just taking away a lot of battery to use for the rest of the lap. I can maybe have a better start, but you can also run out of battery by the time you get to Turn 1, in some places like Mexico for example.
“So, there's going to be some complications, but at the minute it is trickier, mainly because to get the turbo at the perfect point and because you don't have the perfect amount of battery to kind of fill in the dodgy gaps it's quite a bit trickier. So yeah, you'll be seeing plenty of starts being done in Bahrain.”
Additional reporting by Stuart Codling
