FIA listens to drivers and wants F1 cars 50kg lighter by 2026
F1 News
- Cas van de Kleut
The cars have become a lot heavier since the 2022 rule change. Lando Norris has already complained about the back pain he gets from the new cars. The director of single-seater classes at the FIA, Nikolas Tombazis, tells Motorsport.com that a target has been set for 2026 to make the cars 50 kg lighter.
In 2021, before the cars' regulations were changed, the minimum weight was 752 kg. Since the rules changed, the minimum weight has increased to 798 kg, almost 50 kg heavier.
F1 cars 50 kg lighter?
So that should change, Tombazis believes. The Greek explains that the FIA aims to make the current cars 50 kg lighter. This would be possible by making the cars shorter and narrower than they currently are. This would reduce cornering speeds, but speeds on the straights would go up.
Tombazis has also heard concerns about the engines being introduced in 2026, saying that the engines that will be driven then would cause problems on the current cars. Still, the director of the single-seater classes has a good announcement: "In recent months, we have collected a series of very positive developments, so the comments express old positions. We also need to take into account that the engine and chassis will have to evolve together, and it will not be possible to think of one without the other."