How F1 teams face the starting gun over new 2026 regs – The FIA will fire the starting gun at midnight which will start the race amongst the Formula One teams to get to grips with their revolutionary new car designs under the big regulation changes coming in 2026. It may seem bizarre with a full 2025 campaign ahead that the teams will start dedicating precious resources to a car which will not hit the track for more than a year and does this suggests 2025 is less important twosome of the F1 competitors?

As Lewis Hamilton identified as early as the Austrian Grand Prix during last year’s Red Bull uber dominant campaign, “They don’t have to make any changes to this year’s car any more as they’re so far ahead. He’s cruising at 100 points ahead of us.

“I think the FIA should probably put a time when everyone is allowed to start developing on the next year’s car. So August 1, that’s when everybody can start so then no one can get an advantage on the next year, cause that sucks.”

 

 

 

FIA ban early start on new regs

That’s easier said than done when the regulations remain stable from year to year, because how does the FIA identify what work is for this year and which is for next? However, with the big regulation changes coming for 2026 it was easier for the FIA to rule that teams cannot conduct any wind tunnel or CFD analysis before Jan 1st, tomorrow.

Of course all the teams will have mapped out some ideas already, yet the real work begins as soon as critical components are designed and tested. Now all the teams will face the dilemma of how much time to commit early in the new year to their current F1 cars and to those coming in 2026.

Whilst Red Bull suffered the agony of seeing their Mexican driver get thrashed week in and out this year, this gave them the added benefit of more aero testing time this year with a huge rule change in the pipeline. Perez’s legacy may be more than people realise at present.

“We hate finishing third in the championship,” said the Red Bull team boss in Abu Dhabi. “But the additional wind tunnel time that comes with that is the only upside in a year where there is such a dramatic regulatory change [coming, in 2026].” It’s a constant balancing act and if you are in the title battle, inevitably your development gets dragged into the season longer.”

Hulkeberg identifies Hamilton weakness

 

 

 

Red Bull testing time gains significant

The difference in allowance for Red Bull is small but significant, enough to be a small compensation for finishing lower in the championship. For Red Bull, it means an increase from 224 to 256 wind tunnel runs and from 1400 to 1600 CFD items per ATR period. In total they will have an extra 96 wind tunnel runs and 600 CFD items in the first half of next season compared to the same time in 2024, an increase of almost 15% over McLaren.

The question is how to balance the needs to compete for the titles on offer in 2025 and how much in an attempt to steal a march on the rest of the field as a new era of car design begins in 2026. 

Ferrari team boss, Fred Vasseur explained to the Italian media during the festive season: “We are not all in the same situation. I think if you are  Alpineor Aston Martin, then you have probably more temptation to go for the new regulations. Also you have more wind tunnel time, so it means that probably you can go in this direction.

“If you are one team of the top four today, you carry over the car and you know that you will be into the fight for next year, so it’s difficult to give up a championship. Plus, if you know that you didn’t do the best, it is harsh, even for everybody in the team,” concluded Vasseur.

FIA reveal plans for flexi-wing testing

 

 

 

 

McLaren finished the year on the up as they hunted down Red Bull to claim their first F1 constructors’ championship since 1988. Ferrari too were in the hunt and but for waiting 6-8 weeks on the FIA ruling over flexi-wings, it is likely they too would have caught the papaya liveried rivals.

McLaren’s technical director of engineering, Neil Hourly believes the calculation is simple. “I think there’s an opportunity to win a championship in 2025. There’s, of course, an opportunity to win championships in 2026. And we want to do both.

“But there is the competition of Red Bull. Mercedes are going to have a quick car. You’ve got Ferrari who are quick. There’s no reason why these teams aren’t going to be generating a lot of performance the next season, and we’ve got to be there and be doing the same if we want to win the championship.”

All the F1 teams will hit the tests in Bahrain with the same intentions of being more competitive than they were last season. However, those who nail the pre-season work and whose car comes out of the box nicely, will have a greater dilemma than those towards the back of the grid as Aston Marina boss Mike Krack observed.

Skid plank TD cost Ferrari 2024 title

 

 

Everyone starts focused on ’25

“Everybody has to start on the same basis and, depending on where you are, what the gaps are, people will make their choices. But there are no more points in ’26 than in ’25, and there is also a constructors’ championship to be won and a drivers’ championship. I think everyone will be full steam on ’25 at the moment because there are also some restrictions on ’26.

“But then quickly, depending on what the pecking order will be and what the gaps will be, you will have to make a choice. Can I close this gap or will others close the gap to me? Can I afford to go racing with what I have and focus on ’26?

“I cannot answer the question now. We have to be objective and see month on month [basis] where we are.”

Red Bull Racing may find themselves in somewhat of a quandary, with Max Verstappen hoping to win a historic fifth consecutive drivers’ title. Yet the bigger picture for the world champions is 2026 if only because they are building their own power unit from then onwards.

No F1 team that is not an OEM has built an F1 power unit and so for Red Bull this project will define their next decade, far more than a fix for their star driver.

Quitting Red Bull: Verstappen makes his threats clear

 

 

 

Marko reveals news on new Red Bull F1 car

Marko update on readiness of Red Bull 2025 F1 – Red Bull’s advisor, Dr. Helmut Marko has now revealed the status of the car which will be piloted by Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson for the 2025 campaign.

The RB20 was an evolution of the all conquering RB19 and began this year’s competition in fine style. Max won the opening two rounds and by some margin, although a brake failure at round three in Melbourne prevented the world champion from equaling his own record of ten consecutive race victories.

Wins for Max at three of the next four F1 weekends together with a near miss in Miami where Lando Norris benefitted from a late safety car appeared to confirm that Red Bull once again were kings of the F1 hill…. READ MORE