Racing
© Jonathan Borba
The FIA has published Formula 1’s full 278-page technical regulations for 2027, using the next rules cycle to answer criticism of the 2026 power-unit concept with a package designed to make the cars easier to race and less dependent on extreme energy management.
The rules, approved by the World Motor Sport Council, strengthen both sides of the power unit. According to Auto Motor und Sport, the changes include higher maximum fuel energy flow, increased ERS output, more battery energy available per lap, new speed-based energy deployment control and a new overtaking mode. The package also simplifies underfloor aerodynamics, revises aerodynamic-part deflection tests, raises the minimum weight including driver plus ballast to 82kg, and simplifies parts of the safety regulations.
That amounts to a significant correction before the 2026 era has even started. The FIA, Formula 1, the teams and the drivers agreed the revisions as a 2027-28 review of the engine rules after concerns that the original direction would create too much lift-and-coast, too much energy management and races in which overtaking became harder rather than easier.
George Russell gave a glimpse of why the FIA has felt pressure to act. Speaking after the Austrian Grand Prix weekend, Russell said recent regulation changes had already improved the current cars: “I think the regulation changes made since after the Japanese GP were very good. The car has become quite easy to drive.” But he made clear that one major weakness remains, adding: “What all the drivers complain about is tyre air pressure.”
Russell described the sensation bluntly: “To us it feels like we’re driving on a big balloon.” He said progress there would matter not only for drivers but for the quality of racing, because reducing overheating would let cars follow more closely and fight more often.
Charles Leclerc struck a similar tone on the gains already made, but his warning showed why the 2027 reset is not just about headline power figures. Leclerc said he still preferred last year’s car because “at some circuits we could push to the limit,” even if the current direction is improving. As he put it, “George is right that things have improved,” but “at circuits like this, even now we still have to think about energy management constantly while driving.”
For Leclerc, that is still taking something away from the product. He said the need to manage energy so closely “reduces the enjoyment of driving a bit,” even if the problem is less severe at some venues than others, and added that he is confident the situation can improve further.
That leaves the 2027 regulations carrying a clear burden. They are the FIA’s attempt to balance practicality with competitiveness by giving drivers more freedom to push and by building overtaking support into the rules package itself. Whether that works will be judged less by the size of the rulebook than by two stubborn tests Russell and Leclerc have already pointed to: tyres that let drivers race naturally, and an energy-management model that stops dictating the lap.