Formula 1 drivers worried they are not in full control of their 2026 cars

Much of the 2026 F1 power unit's operation is done through algorithms that basically decide when the battery deploys its power, when to harvest, and so on.

That is basically how the new F1 power mills, which are made up of an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) and an electric motor delivering power equally, work.

Aside from the rubbish racing, safety concerns have emerged from unpredictable starts to high-speed deltas between two racing cars and now the risk that drivers are not fully in control of their machines as the algorithm basically decides what happens and any unexpected lift or braking by the driver confuses it.

The incident between Franco Colapinto and Liam Lawson in Melbourne when the latter bogged down and was almost collected by the latter, who only managed to avoid the Racing Bulls through cat-like reflexes.

Oliver Bearman's crash in Suzuka while attempting to pass Colapinto, who was harvesting, as the high-speed differential caught the Briton out as he crashed while trying to avoid rear-ending the Alpine.

As for the lack of control from the drivers, reigning F1 Champion Lando Norris shared his experience from Suzuka saying: “I didn't even want to overtake Lewis [Hamilton]. It's just that my battery deploys; I don't want it to deploy, but I can't control it."

Williams driver Alex Albon revealed matters were discussed among drivers while initial warnings were delivered as early as preseason testing with concerns about the effect of Straight Mode and Corner Mode and how to control the car when it switched between them.

The danger is now from behind, according to Albon, who said: “We actually talked about that in the drivers' briefing, just about the closing speeds and defending and moving and all these kinds of things.

“It feels really awkward now, because you want to defend, but you're sometimes worried that the car is behind—if they're in control of their car.

“Maybe we just need to make SLM itself a bit more stable or less powerful or something like that. More like a regular DRS that you can control quite easily. I don't know," the Thai concluded. 

GrandPrix247 reported the sport's stakeholders have met on Thursday, March 2, to discuss the situation and any potential changes that can be applied in the unexpected April break after the cancelation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix due to the Middle East war. (Reporting by Agnese Carlier)