Drivers escalated public criticism of Formula 1’s new 2026 power-unit and energy-management rules, accusing the sport of sidelining their safety and performance concerns. They are pushing for short-term mitigations before the Miami Grand Prix and for more substantive regulatory adjustments later in the season or next year.

Lewis Hamilton said drivers “have no voting rights” and are not on the committee that shapes technical rules, and several drivers argued the FIA has been “only listening to teams.” Those statements highlight drivers’ concerns about their lack of formal influence over the rulemaking process.

Carlos Sainz warned that the approach creates safety risks, pointing to the Ollie Bearman–Franco Colapinto crash — a closing-speed differential of roughly 50 km/h — as an example, and Bearman walked away without serious injury.

Sources