Racing
© Jonathan Borba
Formula 1 has approved an extra day of pre-season testing for 2027, with the FIA also confirming minor aerodynamic and bodywork changes and tighter restrictions on Testing of Previous Cars venues, all subject to ratification by the FIA World Motor Sport Council.
The package was agreed at the second 2026 meeting of the Formula 1 Commission on June 2 at FIA headquarters in London. The session was chaired by FIA single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis and Formula One Management president and CEO Stefano Domenicali.
The most immediate change for teams is the testing increase from the usual three days to four ahead of the 2027 season. That gives teams and manufacturers more time to develop and validate their cars before the championship begins.
The move follows a much larger pre-season program in 2026, when F1 gave teams extensive running to get on top of the sport's all-new cars and systems. That schedule included a five-day private shakedown in Barcelona and two three-day official tests in Bahrain, allowing up to nine days of track time after one of the biggest rules overhauls in the championship's history.
Alongside the testing decision, the FIA said only minor changes were agreed to aerodynamic and bodywork components for 2027. It did not publish the specifics, but the wording points to refinement rather than a broader rethink of the next rules package.
The Commission also tightened the framework around TPC running. The FIA said the change introduces limitations on conducting tests at circuits due to hold a race in the subsequent year's championship, extending an existing rule that already prevented teams from running previous cars at a calendar circuit within two months of its F1 appearance.
Taken together, the changes indicate F1's rulemakers want to give teams a little more preparation time for 2027 while making only limited adjustments to the regulations themselves, pending final approval from the World Motor Sport Council.