F1: FIA Changes Engine Regulations for 2027 and 2028
The FIA has reached a formal agreement with the FOM, teams, and engine manufacturers to modify the technical, sporting, and financial regulations of Formula 1 for the 2027 and 2028 seasons. This intervention corrects the original guidelines intended for the debut of the new power units in 2026, which were conceived under doubts from insiders regarding the actual effectiveness of energy management and field performance.
Fears of insufficient electric power and difficulties in recharging battery packs materialized in the early races of the championship, prompting the federation leaders to initiate a transition. The crux of the new technological compromise lies in a revised power distribution, which will allow more room for the internal combustion engine at the expense of the regenerative component. For 2028, the agreed target sets a power ratio of 60% for the thermal engine and 40% for the electric part, compared to the current balance of 53/47 (initially it was 50/50).
F1: Gradual Transition to 2028 Engines
To facilitate the transition, the 2027 season will act as a launchpad with an intermediate value set at 58-42. This step will be made possible by a 5% increase in fuel flow allowed for thermal engines, providing designers with a wider margin for adjusting the thermal-electric units before the final settling of the following year.
The official roadmap data certifies the magnitude of this three-year metamorphosis. If in 2026 the current units have a maximum power for the internal combustion engine set at 400 kW and a contribution from the MGU-K of 350 kW, the subsequent two-year period will shift the weights in play. The maximum power of the ICE will rise to 420 kW in 2027 and reach 450 kW in 2028, a progression directly supported by the increased fuel flow, which will grow by 5% in the first year and even by 13% in the second. Conversely, the standard power of the MGU-K will decrease to 300 kW, although drivers will be able to benefit from peaks of 350 kW in overtaking mode.
Meanwhile, to avoid the specter of clipping, the energy recovery capacity during braking will be massively enhanced, increasing from the original 350 kW to 400 kW in 2028, thus compensating for the reduction in nominal electric power with a much faster and more efficient recharging of the batteries.
The approved package of measures also addresses fuel energy flows to restore better competitiveness to the single-seaters, particularly during qualifying sessions, without compromising the spectacular nature of the race competition. The new guidelines introduce greater flexibility in managing energy flows and in kinetic energy recovery, in an attempt to avert scenarios where cars find themselves suddenly without electric power on the longest straights. Beyond the purely engineering parameters, the agreement also touches on economic and procedural aspects. Adjustments to financial regulations, field operations, and rules governing engine supply to customer teams have indeed been deliberated. This is a complex regulatory architecture that required lengthy discussions from the early stages of the current season, highlighting the need for concrete corrections to avoid distorting the very nature of the cars.
The ball is now in the court of the institutional bodies for the bureaucratic validation of the new texts. The federation has announced an urgent procedure to ratify the changes, giving teams and manufacturers sufficient time to realign their industrial and development plans. The final step will take place on June 23 in Macau, the day when the changes will be submitted for formal vote by the World Motor Sport Council.