FIA, Formula 1, and its teams have discussed mechanisms in the 2026 engine regulations, allowing lagging manufacturers to catch up while investigating solutions to avoid a recurrence of the grass fire incident at the Japanese Grand Prix.
The 2026 engine regulations are a key point on the agenda of the last F1 Commission meeting on Thursday (4/24/2025) in Geneva, amidst concerns about new regulations that will make the grid much wider when introduced next season. There is widespread desire to prevent a repeat of the 2014 incident when Mercedes took the lead position and it took years for some manufacturers, like the new 2015 team Honda, to catch up.
Unlike that time, next year’s engine program will be subject to budget constraints, making it more difficult for those lagging behind to catch up, which is why various chase mechanisms were discussed in the meeting.
Motorsport.com understands that all teams have reached a basic agreement to allow lagging manufacturers to use additional dyno hours and also additional engine budget space. Only the power unit, and not the team’s performance, will be used to determine whether a manufacturer is lagging behind or not.
On the agenda, proposals were also discussed to drastically reduce the electrical components of the power unit next year to avoid scenarios where cars have to dramatically slow down on straight tracks because their batteries run out of power.
The reintroduction of this topic divided opinions during the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, with Mercedes F1 principal Toto Wolff calling the proposal a joke. Meanwhile, Christian Horner – whose Red Bull team is working on an internal electric power unit with help from Ford – is a major supporter. One compromise is to only adjust the energy usage levels in races on tracks dominated by long straight sections, such as Monza.
It is understood that there is still a gap between various teams on what compromises are acceptable. Any engine-related changes will be considered in more detail by the power unit advisory committee.
In a statement, the FIA said, “The F1 Commission in principle discussed the refinement of energy management strategies for 2026, as well as steps to address financial challenges that may be faced by power unit manufacturers experiencing low performance or significant reliability issues in 2026.”
The F1 Commission also discussed possible solutions for the grass fire incidents that disrupted the Japanese Grand Prix last weekend, with practice and qualifying being halted several times due to sparks from cars igniting the grass lining the Suzuka circuit.
FIA said “it has been agreed to investigate alternative skid materials (steel) and potential maintenance at some circuits.” The transition from titanium to stainless steel in grass-lined tracks may have some implications related to car weight and skid plate wear, which still need to be discussed.
Other things that need to be fixed are the amendments required to implement a mandatory two-stop strategy at the Monaco Grand Prix as well as the adjustments needed for the capital expenditure allowance for newcomers before Cadillac joins next year.
