FIA chief urges teams to 'push harder' over major rule change compliance

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FIA chief urges teams to 'push harder' over major rule change compliance

Nikolas Tombazis says teams will have no choice but to comply with new weight regulations

Cal Gaunt

Tuesday 2 January 2024 19:57

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Nikolas Tombazis has asserted that there will be no room for "haggling" or fluctuation over F1's 2026 rules in a bid to avoid cars becoming too bulky.

Critics argue that the current ground effect machines are burdened by excessive weight, given the current minimum limit of 798kg, which includes a baseline for drivers.

This is significantly higher than the 585kg of cars alone in 2008, mainly due to hybrid power units and upgraded safety measures.

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The FIA aims to prevent the weight limit from rising further, planning to set a limit for the 2026 rules cycle and stick to it. They intend to reduce F1 car weight by 40 to 50 kilos in 2026 through smaller cars and wheels.

Nikolas Tombazis, the FIA’s head of single-seater matters, has stressed the commitment to maintaining the set weight limit, even if teams face challenges meeting it.

Nikolas Tombazis expects the FIA to stick to its weight limit rules in 2026

Nikolas Tombazis says F1 teams will have to 'push harder' to comply with the 2026 laws

FIA won't shift on weight limit

“Clearly it will still be a challenge for the teams to achieve that low weight,” Tombazis said. “They're not going to have an easy ride there.

“But we are going to stick to the weight limit we're going to impose, and we won't be inflating upwards again.

“They [the teams] will just have to push harder to reduce the weight if they can't make it.”

The FIA want to see F1 cars smaller and lighter in 2026

Removing weight limit not ideal

In the ongoing discussions about the weight of Formula 1 cars, there have been suggestions that, given the current stringent crash test requirements, removing the minimum weight limit might not compromise safety.

However, Tombazis believes this approach is not ideal, as it could lead to a spending war among teams prioritising lightweight components.

“That has been discussed a few times, about whether we need the weight limit,” he added.

“But we believe that to get rid of it completely would be creating a never-ending battle of reducing the weight. That could have some unforeseen consequences.

F1 cars have got considerably heavier and longer in recent years

“So, what we're putting for 2026 will be a weight limit which afterwards will not change.

“We will not be succumbing to this continuous sort of haggling for a couple of kilos, where the teams say, ‘you've added the electrical, let's add two kilos’, or the tyres are a bit heavier, let's add another few kilos and things like that. We won't be doing that.

“Teams will have to work to that limit. And I think there could be some teams that are a bit overweight in 2026.”

F1 Mercedes FIA Nikolas Tombazis