F1 boss admits controversial new regulations will need to be changed AGAIN

Domenicali in a suit stood next to Brown in McLaren F1 kit, both holding mics on stage at McLaren event in Trafalgar Square — Photo: © IMAGO

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F1 boss admits controversial new regulations will need to be changed AGAIN

Are there more tweaks to the FIA's F1 2026 regulations on the way?

Kerry Violet F1 News Editor

F1 editor and journalist covering motorsport since 2024.

Tuesday 28 April 2026 09:49 Updated: 11:46

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McLaren F1 boss Zak Brown has admitted the sport's current controversial regulations could be in need of refining yet again even after the latest round of changes.

The F1 2026 campaign was forced into a five-week hiatus following the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix, which were unable to take place this month due to ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

Though the break wasn't ideal for the sport at a time where it is under the microscope, it did give F1 and the FIA the opportunity to review the highly contested rules brought about by the largely overhauled chassis and power unit regulations this season.

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At the Japanese GP last time out, many drivers and team bosses publicly called for a review of the new regulations after Haas driver Ollie Bearman suffered a scary crash (that he thankfully came away from unharmed) caused by dangerous closing speeds.

This incident put F1 president Stefano Domenicali under serious pressure, with the Italian doubling down and insisting, 'F1 has no problems'.

Nevertheless, a series of meetings between the FIA, stakeholders, the teams, their drivers and the power unit providers has led to the rules being tweaked, with the changes set to be tested at this weekend's Miami Grand Prix.

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Brown warns F1 2026 regulations need further tweaks ahead of Miami GP

The FIA's amendments to the current F1 regulations have hardly been groundbreaking, but they have been designed to hopefully address some of the biggest concerns voiced by drivers up and down the grid during the opening rounds of this year's championship.

As well as the changes looking to increase safety surrounding the aforementioned issue of closing speeds, the changes mostly focus on energy management and making qualifying more competitive.

Following the announcement of the FIA's rule changes ahead of the sprint weekend in Miami, McLaren CEO Brown discussed his thoughts on the 2026 regulations with Sky Sports F1.

When discussing McLaren's view as a team of the FIA's latest 'tweaks', Brown was asked by Sky's Craig Slater whether he felt F1's governing body had done enough to solve the issues or not.

In response, Brown said: "I think it's a great step forward. I think, you know, really can't answer that opinion or that question until we see it in Miami. But I think it's a great step forward.

"Our sport's very exciting and people like to get very excited. We're only three races into these new regulations.

"They're only going to get the engineers smarter, smooth the path. Same thing that happened when the hybrid came out a decade ago. Kind of the same noise."

But the 54-year-old then suggested this won't be the last round of changes to the current regulations cycle, concluding: "So the FIA, the teams, the drivers, everyone's worked together. I think it's going to be a great step forward. Is it going to be enough? Does it need to be refined again? Probably, but we'll wait and see."