Lewis Hamilton in Ferrari red. After a full season, it still doesn’t feel quite normal.
2025 was his first year at Maranello. The man who won seven world titles with Mercedes , who built a dynasty at Brackley , raced side by side with Charles Leclerc. And now they’re entering a completely new era together.
Because 2026 isn’t just a new season. It’s a total restart. New engines. New aerodynamics. New teams. A completely new game.
Let’s dive in.
The Technical Revolution: 50% Electric
Forget everything you knew about F1 engines. The 2026 power units are a fundamentally different beast.
The MGU-H , that thing that harvested energy from turbo heat , is gone. Completely removed. Instead, the MGU-K (the motor on the rear axle) gets a massive upgrade: from 120kW to 350kW of electric power. That’s more than a full Formula E car. And it needs to deliver 50% of the total power output.
The combustion engine itself gets smaller. 1.6 liters, turbocharged, but now running on 100% sustainable fuel. The combination still produces over 1000 hp , half of which is electric.
Five engine manufacturers line up at the start: Mercedes, Ferrari, Red Bull-Ford, Honda, and Audi. The last two are newcomers (or in Honda’s case, returnees). Competition gets fiercer.
Active Aero: The Shape-Shifting Car
This is the real game-changer. Active aerodynamics. Legal. Finally.
The 2026 cars have movable front and rear wings. On straights, they go flat for minimum drag. In corners, they open up for maximum downforce. The difference? 30% less downforce and 55% less drag than the current generation.
And DRS? Gone. Instead, you get “Overtake Mode” , a system that combines active aero with an extra electric boost. Available when you’re within one second of the car ahead. Manually activated. Strategically deployed.
The cars also get smaller and lighter. 768 kg (40 kg less). 20 cm shorter. These should be the most agile F1 cars in years.
The New Political Landscape
The grid expands. 22 cars. 11 teams.
Audi takes over Sauber and becomes a full factory team. Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto behind the wheel. The German brand has invested billions. Expectations are sky-high.
Cadillac-Andretti is the eleventh team. Mario Andretti’s dream becomes reality , albeit with Cadillac branding and Ferrari engines. Sergio Perez and Valtteri Bottas are the drivers. Two experienced hands building a completely new team from scratch.
Racing Bulls is the new name for the former AlphaTauri. Yuki Tsunoda stays, with young Arvid Lindblad as teammate.
Alpine switches from Renault engines to Mercedes. A dramatic change.
Aston Martin gets Honda engines. The Japanese manufacturer returns with an exclusive partnership.
The Complete Driver Lineup
Here’s where it gets interesting.
Ferrari: Lewis Hamilton & Charles Leclerc
The dream combination. Or nightmare, depending on who you ask. Two alphas, one team. It’ll be beautiful or it’ll be a disaster. There’s no middle ground.
McLaren: Lando Norris & Oscar Piastri
The reigning world champion stays with his team. Norris won the title in 2025 and has no reason to leave. Piastri is the perfect wingman who occasionally wins too.
Red Bull: Max Verstappen & Isack Hadjar
Verstappen stays. Hadjar makes the step up from Racing Bulls to the top team after a strong debut year.
Mercedes: George Russell & Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Antonelli enters his second season after a promising debut year. The pressure to live up to Hamilton’s legacy remains.
Williams: Carlos Sainz & Alexander Albon
Sainz made a surprising choice. Williams is investing heavily and he believes in the project.
Haas: Ollie Bearman & Esteban Ocon
Bearman is the newest British hope. Ocon seeks a fresh start.
What This Means For Racing
More overtaking. That’s the promise.
With less downforce and active aero, cars should be able to follow each other more closely. The dirty air problem that plagued the previous generation should be less severe. Overtake Mode gives chasers a concrete weapon.
But , and this is important , energy management becomes everything. That 350kW of electric power comes from a battery you can’t just top up freely. When you use your boost, how you spread your energy across a stint… that becomes as important as tire strategy.
The budget cap goes up to $215 million for 2026. Sounds like a lot, but with completely new cars and engines, it’s still tight. Every team starts more or less from zero.
Sprints Return
Six sprint weekends this year. Shotgun qualifying remains: six drivers eliminated in Q1 and Q2.
It’s not everyone’s favorite format, but it’s here to stay. More action, more TV time, more money. The formula works , at least for the commercial side of the sport.
My Prediction?
This season will be chaos. Pure, glorious chaos.
Nobody knows how the new engines stack up. Nobody knows which team understands active aero best. Nobody knows if Hamilton and Leclerc can work together or will tear each other apart.
And that’s exactly what makes it exciting.
The first races will be a lottery. By summer, we might know who defines the new order. Or maybe it’ll take until Abu Dhabi before there’s clarity.
One thing is certain: Formula 1 2026 will be television you can’t look away from.
Lights out in March. I can’t wait.