A deafening media silence followed yesterday’s F1 crisis summit to discuss changes to the widely criticised new racing rules—a stark contrast to the cacophony of ridicule that has emerged from the cockpit since the season began. Almost to a man, the sport’s drivers have savaged F1’s new era, and the FIA meeting on April 9 was intended to bring about significant structural change.
Since the inception of the 2026 season, the paddock talk has been swamped by the issue of F1 drivers becoming energy management experts rather than pilots attempting to race as fast as they can. Lando Norris offered a withering assessment of the new era after the Japanese Grand Prix, revealing his car had effectively overruled its pilot to overtake Lewis Hamilton without any manual input.
“I didn’t even want to overtake Lewis, it’s just about how the battery deploys, and I don’t want it to deploy, but I can’t control it. So I overtake him, and then I have no battery, so he just flies past,” the world champion revealed in the media pen.
Credit to Reddit user for this image
The FIA fiddles whilst Rome burns
Yet senior F1 officials and team bosses on the whole have closed ranks over the farcical state of play, suggesting that mere “tweaks” are required to fix some minor issues with F1’s new regulations. Following yesterday’s big pow-wow, a statement from the FIA revealed: “It was generally agreed that although the events to date have provided exciting racing, there was a commitment to making tweaks to some aspects of the regulations in the area of energy management.” Talk about fiddling whilst Rome burned.
At the last round in Japan, there was a horrific crash involving Haas F1 driver Oliver Bearman. As he was deploying his battery power through the blind, fast right-hander approaching the Spoon corner, he came upon the Alpine of Franco Colapinto, who was travelling much more slowly and harvesting energy.
Bearman had no choice but to jink to the left to avoid a high-speed rear-end collision, forcing him onto the grass and ultimately into the crash barrier, with his transponder recording the impact to be at 50g. A stunned Carlos Sainz later commented in the paddock that his fellow racer was fortunate this incident occurred where there was a huge run-off area before the barriers.
“These kind of closing speeds and these kind of accidents were always going to happen, and I’m not very happy with what we’ve had up until now, and hopefully we come up with a better solution that doesn’t create these massive closing speeds and a safer way of going racing,” said the visibly shocked Spaniard.
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Sainz considered the fact the incident happened in Suzuka as fortunate, given that at a street circuit the crash could have been fatal. “Here we were lucky there was an escape road. Now imagine going to Baku or going to Singapore or going to Vegas and having this kind of closing speeds and crashes next to the walls. We, as the GPDA, have warned the FIA these accidents are going to happen a lot with this set of regulations, and we need to change something soon if we don’t want them to happen.”
So all eyes and ears were on the behind-closed-doors meeting yesterday between the FIA, who govern the rules and safety of F1, and the stakeholders, which include the engine manufacturers. Yet despite endless hours of debate, nothing concrete was decided, with the FIA issuing an insipid report which merely served to justify the current state of affairs due to the prior agreement of all F1 stakeholders.
“The 2026 regulations were developed and agreed in close partnership with teams, OEMs, Power Unit Manufacturers, the commercial rights holder and the FIA all at the table. It is in this spirit of collaboration that potential changes are being discussed,” read the post-meeting statement. Of course, the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Grand Prix has bought F1’s governing body time, given the next round in Miami will take place the first weekend of May.
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However, for nothing concrete on the issue of driver safety to come from yesterday’s meeting is more than disappointing. Instead, further rounds of chit-chat were announced. “As part of the round of collaborative discussions, further meetings are planned over the coming fortnight,” the rambling FIA missive revealed.
The persistent emphasis on unity and collaboration does appear overstated. “There is a Sporting Regulations meeting on April 15 during which any changes in Section B that are required to facilitate the technical changes will be discussed. The next technical session will be on April 16 during which points discussed today will be followed up and new topics will be given exposure.”
New topics??? The list of issues requiring some radical resolutions is extensive enough presently. And the solutions have been well-aired by paddock analysts and the broadcasting media together with the written press. Simply put, the contribution from the battery mandated at 50% of the total power is way too high.
This is leading to “super clipping” at the end of straights where the internal combustion engine is not simply powering the rear wheels, but acting as a generator to create charge for the energy store. So not only has the car run out of electrical energy and slowed, it is further decelerating due to the requirement of the internal combustion engine to generate electricity rather than power the car. This effectively turns a 200mph thoroughbred into a moving chicane at the very point where closing speeds are at their most lethal. Whoever thought this would be a safe and sane state of affairs proves the old adage: ‘do not let the lunatics run the asylum.’
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Yet this is exactly what F1’s governing body did. They allowed the manufacturers (OEMs) to decide on the philosophy and architecture of the F1 engines. While they were responsible for the future of the sport, they abdicated their responsibility, leading to the current state of affairs. This is the reason for the FIA’s defensive response and their persistent referral to collaboration and consensus. Within their duty of responsibility to care for the drivers’ safety, the FIA does not need consensus to make swift and necessary changes—they can do so unilaterally.
The conclusion of their statement revealed yet another talking session has been planned: “A high-level meeting with representation from all stakeholders is scheduled for April 20 where it is anticipated that preferred options jointly proposed by the technical teams will be considered and a consensus sought on the way forward.”
Some of the manufacturers believe the current regulations are fine as they stand. Having invested gazillions in the technology, Mercedes is understandably reluctant to see their hard-won engineering lead legislated into oblivion. The range of options available to solve the F1 ‘energy crisis’ is limited, but various teams and engine manufacturers have their positions to defend. Mercedes does not want a reduction in the total amount of energy power allowed because their powertrain is working effectively, whilst others have missed the mark.
The FIA does not need consensus to act; but it does need to ensure F1 racing is safe and not some kind of Mario Kart look alike. It is time for the governing body to recover their grip on F1’s regulatory steering wheel and remind the manufacturers that this is a sporting contest, not an automotive laboratory.
Next Article: From Senna’s Rival to F1’s Soundtrack: The Real Reason Martin Brundle is Stepping Away from the Microphone
Last Updated on April 9 2026, 5:45 pm
The voice of Martin Brundle has served as the definitive soundtrack to Formula 1 for nearly three decades. From his 1997 debut alongside the legendary Murray Walker to his current status as the authoritative elder statesman of Sky Sports, Brundle has navigated the sport’s transition from a niche European pursuit to a global, high-glamour powerhouse.
Yet, as the F1 calendar swelled to a gruelling 24-race marathon, the man synonymous with the “Grid Walk” has been pulling into the pits more frequently. No longer will he attend every race; in 2026, he will be present for just 16 rounds. This tactical ‘culling’ has seen Brundle focusing on crown jewel events while skipping gruelling early-morning flyaways.
While Martin is now synonymous with the microphone, his racing career was defined by immense natural talent, a fierce rivalry with Ayrton Senna, and a “what could have been” trajectory following a life-altering injury. His name was etched into racing history before he even reached F1. In 1983, he engaged in a legendary season-long duel with Ayrton Senna in the British Formula 3 Championship.
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And the GPDA is moaning sans influence or power