The 2026 season will feature a major set of regulation changes with a revised power unit configuration and new active aerodynamics.Audi, who acquiredSauber in2024, will enter as aworks team with its own power unit, whileCadillac is set to make its debut in the championship usingFerrari power units, marking the first time an eleventh team has competed since2016.Honda, through itsHonda Racing Corporation subsidiary, will enter into an exclusive works team agreement withAston Martin, and will supply them with their own power unit after ending its current relationship withRed Bull Racing.Ford will return to the sport for the first time since2004, supportingRed Bull Powertrains in supplying power units to Red Bull Racing andRacing Bulls.Renault will no longer be an engine supplier asAlpine will switch toMercedes power units.
Entries
Each team is required to enter at least two drivers, one for each of the two mandatory cars.[1] All teams are due to compete with tyres supplied byPirelli.[2]
Teams and drivers that are contracted to compete in the 2026 World Championship
Audi andCadillac will enter Formula One for the first time, whileFord will return for the first time since2004.Honda will return as an independent engine supplier for the first time since2021.
Cadillac will become the eleventh team, marking Cadillac's first appearance in the series and the first new team on the grid sinceHaas in2016. The team will initially useFerrari power units and gearboxes,[19][20][21][23] transitioning to a power unit developed in-house by its parent company,General Motors, in collaboration withTWG Motorsports.[43] This power unit programme has received approval from the FIA and is scheduled to be introduced from the 2029 season.[44] Cadillac had previously tried to enter Formula One in conjunction withAndretti Global.[45][46]
Three new engine manufacturers will enter Formula One, coinciding with the engine regulation changes.Audi will enter the sport for the first time, having purchased the existingSauber team in2024. Audi's predecessor companyAuto Union didcompete in Grand Prix racing prior toWorld War II and the inception of the World Championship in1950.[47] The team raced in 2024 and2025 asKick Sauber, using Ferrari engines, before it becomes the Audi factory team in 2026. Thus, Ferrari will supply Haas and Cadillac as customer teams.[15][48]
Ford will return to Formula One as anengine supplier for the first time since it provided engines for its former customer teamJordan in2004.[49] It will form a partnership withRed Bull Powertrains, which will supplyRed Bull Racing and their second teamRacing Bulls.Honda, which partially withdrew from Formula One in2021 whilst remaining partners of Red Bull Powertrains, will split from the two Red Bull-owned teams and relaunch a fully-independent engine programme supplyingAston Martin under theHonda Racing Corporation subsidiary. Aston Martin had usedMercedes power units since they re-joined the sport, who had supplied engines to Aston Martin's predecessors since2009. Honda had previously collaborated with Aston Martin's predecessor Jordan from1998 to2002.[9][38][50]
Renault will cease to provide engines forAlpine from 2026 after achieving poor results since the beginning of the hybrid power unit regulations in2014. It will thus be the first season without Renault as engine supplier since the2000 championship. Alpine will become a customer team, as opposed to a full works outfit, as had been the case since Renault reacquiredTeam Enstone ahead of the2016 season.[5] Alpine will become a customer team ofMercedes, utilising their engines and gearboxes from this season onwards; up until this point,2015 marked the last time a rendition of Team Enstone used customer Mercedes engines, competing asLotus.[6]
Driver changes
Sergio Pérez andValtteri Bottas will return to full time seats withCadillac. Pérez had previously signed a two-year contract withRed Bull Racing until 2026, but this was terminated by mutual agreement at the end of the2024 season. Bottas last competed withSauber in 2024 and was one ofMercedes's reserve drivers for2025.[51]
Nations that are scheduled to host aGrand Prix in 2026 are highlighted in green, with circuit locations marked with a black dot. Former host nations are shown in dark grey, and former host circuits are marked with a white dot.
Financial, power unit, aerodynamic, geometric, and safety regulations are all set to be altered for the 2026 season.[59]
Financial regulation
For 2026, the Formula One cost cap for team operational expenditures was increased from $135 million to $215 million. This is primarily due to inflation adjustments and the inclusion of costs that were previously exempted from the cap. Key expenses remaining outside the cost cap include driver salaries, the salaries of the three highest-paid team members, marketing and hospitality costs, and infrastructure investments.[60][61][62][63] A separate cost cap for power unit manufacturers, which was introduced in2023, was also increased from $95 million to $130 million from 2026 onwards to support the development of the new hybrid engines.[64][65][66]
Technical regulations
Power units
New power unit regulations are due to be introduced for the 2026 season.[67][68] The new power units will still produce over 1,000 bhp (750 kW), although the power will come from different sources. The engine regulations will see the turbocharged 1.6-litre V6internal combustion engine configuration used since2014 retained. However, theMGU-H (Motor Generator Unit – Heat), which has also been in use since 2014, will be removed, while theMGU-K (Motor Generator Unit – Kinetic) output will increase to 470 bhp (350 kW) from 160 bhp (120 kW). The power output of the internal combustion part of the power unit will decrease to 540 bhp (400 kW) from 850 bhp (630 kW). Fuel flow rates will be measured and limited based on energy, rather than mass of the fuel itself. The power units will use a fullysustainable fuel being developed by Formula One.[69][70] The power units are expected to recover twice as much electrical energy as before.[71]
During the Commission meeting in early 2025, it was agreed to explore for catch-up options for power unit development for manufacturers who may have fallen behind their competitors in the initial development phase. The Commission also suggested that a relevant advisory committee look at whether the energy deployment of new power units should be reduced in race trim from the planned 470 bhp (350 kW) after some teams became concerned about the possibility of their cars running out of deployable energy in a race.[72]
Car size and aerodynamics
On 6 June 2024, the 2026 car concept was revealed. The concept featured new active aerodynamics in both the front and rear wings. The concept saw the elimination of thedrag reduction system, being replaced by a new overtake mode, initially referred to as manual override mode.[73] The wheelbase was reduced from 360 cm (140 in) to 340 cm (130 in), the width was reduced from 200 cm (79 in) to 190 cm (75 in), and the minimum mass was reduced by 30 kg (66 lb). The tyres' widths will also be reduced by 2.5 cm (0.98 in) on the front pair and by 3.0 cm (1.2 in) on the rears.[71][74] The floor will have reducedground effect to ease the issues cars have suffered withporpoising.[75]
In October 2024, FIA announced that the downforce reduction of the 2026 cars compared to the2022–2025 generation of cars would be less than initially proposed for performance and safety reasons.[76] Later in the month, the FIA confirmed that the reduction in downforce from the 2026 generation of cars would be around 15%, a significantly smaller reduction than the originally drafted regulations which the FIA claimed had given the 2026 cars downforce reduction of over 40% compared to their predecessors. This will make the 2026 cars approximately two seconds slower a lap than the 2022–2025 generation of cars rather than the four seconds slower initially envisaged.[77] On 17 December 2025, Formula One announced the official terms describing features of the 2026 cars. The term "boost mode" will be used to describe the normal deployment of the energy recovery system (ERS) to defend or attack; "active aerodynamics" (or simply "active aero") to describe the moveable front and rear wing elements – in both higher and lower drag/downforce configuration; "recharge" to describe when a car is harvesting electrical energy; and "overtake mode" to describe a mode where extra energy stored is used in order to help one driver overtake another, but only if the driver behind is within one second of the one ahead (similar to pre-2026 DRS deployment rules).[78][79]
Safety features
The regulations for the front impact structure (FIS) will be updated with the intent to enhancesafety during crashes. A two-stage FIS design has been introduced to address previous issues where the structure detached near the survival cell after a primary collision, leaving the vehicle vulnerable to further impacts. Side intrusion protection, particularly around the cockpit and fuel cell will also be improved. These upgrades aim to shield critical areas of the car during side collisions, while maintaining the vehicle's weight. The roll hoop's strength will be improved, withstanding loads increased from 16g to 20g, aligning with safety standards of othersingle-seater series. The load testing requirements will be raised from 141 kN to 167 kN.[80]
To further safeguard drivers andtrack marshals, lateral safety lights will be mandated. These lights will display theenergy recovery system (ERS) status of a car when it stops on track, providing visual indicators of potential electrical risks, especially in emergency situations.[80]
Sporting regulations
Driver numbers
The rules surrounding the permanent driver numbering system introduced in2014 will be modified. Drivers will be permitted to change their race number during their careers pending permission from the FIA and any past driver that may have used a requested number.[81][82]
Car liveries
In order to discourage teams leaving excessive amounts of exposed black carbon on their cars in order to save weight, the FIA will mandate that a minimum of 55% of the surface area when viewed from the side and above must be covered by painted or stickered liveries.[83]
Cooling vests and special heat provisions
Driver cooling vests will be mandated when the FIA declares a heat hazard during a race weekend. Prior to 2026, the cooling vest was optional. Additionally, the vest will undergo a redesign.[84]
Stewarding reviews
For 2026, stewards will have the option to initiate a review based on new evidence. Under the previous version of the ISC, a competitor had to submit a right of review request for any decision to be reviewed. The option for competitors to submit a right of review remains in place. Additionally, an "out of competition" stewards panel will be introduced for time sensitive decisions that cannot wait until the next event.[85]
Season summary
Pre-season
Three pre-season tests are being held, a significant expansion over previous years' testing programs to account for the new chassis and engine regulations.[86] The first was a private test which took place at theCircuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from 26 to 30 January, with teams allowed to run in a maximum of three of the five days. All teams ran in the private test exceptWilliams.[55][87]Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) set the fastest time in the five-day test.[88] The second test was held at theBahrain International Circuit from 11–13 February, withKimi Antonelli (Mercedes) setting the fastest time in the three-day test.[89] The third test will also be held at the same venue from 18–20 February.[55]
^TheAzerbaijan Grand Prix was originally scheduled for 27 September but was moved forward by one day to accommodateRemembrance Day, following a request from the promoter and relevant government stakeholders.[53][55]
^Kallas, Fernando (23 January 2024)."Madrid to host Spanish GP from 2026, Barcelona future uncertain".Reuters.Archived from the original on 25 January 2024. Retrieved7 May 2024.Madrid will host the Spanish Grand Prix from 2026 to 2035 on a new city circuit around the capital's IFEMA exhibition centre, Formula One said on Tuesday in an announcement that left Barcelona facing an uncertain future.
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