FIA director hints changes could already be made to unused F1 gadget

FIA director Nikolas Tombazis has revealed changes can still be made to F1's latest gadget: 'overtake mode'.

Alongside aerodynamic and power unit changes, the new regulations will also alter wheel-to-wheel racing with DRS being replaced by 'overtake mode'.

Overtake mode will be activated when a driver is within one second of the car ahead, which deploys extra power. Unlike DRS, the mode isn't limited to specific zones on the track, and instead can be used strategically throughout the lap - either all at once or spread out.

While the amount of extra energy available is fixed, there is still wiggle room for change to ensure that overtaking doesn't become too difficult, nor too easy.

Speaking to the media, the FIA's single seater director, Nikolas Tombazis, revealed that F1's governing body will monitor the new gadget during winter testing and early races, and claimed there is a 'lever' they can pull to make adjustments.

"We are still fine-tuning that,” Tombazis said.

"As we're getting more and more final simulations we have levers that we can adjust from a regulatory point of view.

"So if we see that overtaking is a bit too difficult, for example, we have levers to make it get a bit easier. Or if we find it is too easy, we have levers to make it a bit more challenging."

Will overtaking improve in 2026?

One of the biggest criticisms of the ground effect era was the lack of overtaking out on track, with the dirty air from the lead car being one of the main culprits as to why following was so difficult.

The new regulations aim to combat this turbulent air problem – which was supposed to be eradicated by the 2022 ruleset – with a lower beam wing and in-washing wheel wake control boards on the front of the sidepods to make following easier.

Alongside these new designs and overtake mode, the 2026 cars will also feature active aero, where the front and rear wings can be switched between Corner Mode and Straight Mode, altering downforce and drag.

Tombazis continued: "Overtaking has to be in a narrow window. It cannot be too easy. We don't want cars just driving past each other not having a fight. We always want to have this fight.

"But we also don't want it to be impossible, so that when they leave the grid after lap one, you know how it is going to finish. We clearly don't want that either.

"We have ways to go in both directions. And when we get the initial running and final simulations with cars and so on, we may need to take some of those to do some small adjustments."

F1 HEADLINES: Verstappen team-mate plans unveiled as star opens up on retirement

Related