You can never take the excitement out of Formula One, but you can't say officials have not tried. In fact, their latest attempts have had a lot of unintended consequences that have not gone down well with the fans who have seen cars slow down on straits rather than accelerate due to the new engines. The good news is that the FIA is finally looking to do something about it. However, don't expect changes to be acted upon and rolled out in the next race. Not at all, in fact, tweaking the engines will take time. At the earliest, these rules will become effective starting the 2027 season. The idea behind the F1 2027 engine regulations is to make the races more fan-friendly and yes, keep the drivers happy too. Both have been far from that sweet spot for quite some time.
Now, the officials are focusing on how to make cars easier to drive, stop excessive reliance on the energy-saving mode and ensure there is a lot of excitement on the race track with drivers vying with each other aggressively for a better race position and make it stick rather than slow down to save energy.
The problem lies with the new hybrid engines, which are very focused on energy-saving modes and cause the cars to slow down. The new rules will look to boost the combustion engine factor and reduce the energy-saving part to make the cars faster. At the moment the ratio is 50-50. While nothing has been etched in stone, it is expected that the next generation engines will have a ratio that would excite everyone involved, boost the sport's popularity and be sustainable too. The Guardian has indicaed it could be 60-40 in favour of engines - the hybrid unit will see a reduction in its power output. The major problem to these changes will be getting a larger fuel tank to fit in the chassis. In effect, that would need to be redesigned and it is a huge undertaking as absolutely everything, including the safety of the drivers, is dependent on it.
Notably, the current rules have forced drivers to virtually stop accelerating during races in an attempt to conserve battery. It has led to shocking results and some have almost caused collisions. Drivers have gone on record to point out that it is a tragedy in waiting. As it stands, it is too easy to overtake the car in front, the defending driver is virtually defenceless with his car slowing down terrifyingly fast - Ollie Bearman and Franco Colapinto almost had a horrifying crash at Suzuka. However, as soon as the driver in front is passed, he gets the upper edge when he starts to attack and the cycle becomes endless. The new rules may roll out a new fight mode, allowing the driver at the front to fight back, retaliate and even repel the attack, creating a much more aggressive and exciting race.
Another such damp squib during a race is that till now, fans used to see the cars accelerating to their highest speeds on a straight track and then hitting the brakes for the corner. Now, the cars actually slow down on the straight in an order to conserve energy. This has shocked the fan community used to seeing fast-moving cars and hearing the roar of an accelerating engine, which now has become a whine.
Where do things stand? While Formula One teams, engine manufacturers and FIA officials have agreed on certain rules in a recent meeting, governing bodies of the sport have yet to sign on the dotted line.