Why drastic 2026 F1 targets still weigh on teams

When Formula 1's new generation of cars turn up in Barcelona at the end of January for the first collective shakedown, few of them are expected to meet the FIA's 2026 minimum weight.

As part of its 2026 rules overhaul, which features a departure from ground effect cars as well a much bigger electric component to the hybrid engines, a reduced weight limit has long been mooted as a key performance differentiator.

The minimum car weight for F1's new rules era has been set at 768kg, 32kg down on the 2025 limit of 800kg. That comes despite an increase in battery weight to accommodate a near 50-50 split of internal combustion power and energy derived from the expanded MGU-K system, although reduced car dimensions and narrower tyres should help shave off some weight. From 2026 the cars' maximum wheelbase has been reduced by 200mm to 3400mm and the width has been cut from 2000m to 1900mm.

The FIA is keen to slash car weight even further, after it ballooned by more than 200kg over the past two decades. But teams were still puzzled when the aggressive weight reduction was first announced, bracing for another key battleground to open up for 2026 alongside aerodynamics, power unit design and engine deployment.

Fast forward several months, and by the turn of the year several team representatives still believe the 768kg limit will be ambitious for most teams to achieve any time soon. Given every 10kg of additional weight amounts to around three tenths per second on the track, that could make a significant impact on the early pecking order.

Audi F1 Team shakedown

Photo by: Audi

"It would be good to find out from others where they are, but I think most will be overweight," Williams team principal James Vowles told Autosport in Abu Dhabi. "That's the simple facts behind it. It's a very aggressive target, but it's manageable. It's a number that I can see that will be in a sensible place in five to 10 months after the regulations come out, so I'm relaxed [about it]."

Mercedes' Andrew Shovlin also concurred the weight issue is still a major topic: "Weight is a huge challenge. The limit wasn’t set by summing components, it was simply imposed. It’s much cheaper to remove weight before parts are made than after cars are built and stock is in circulation.

"Teams in previous regulations were 10kg to 20kg overweight initially, which is costly and interferes with development. Our aim is to start as close to the limit as possible."

Speaking to Autosport earlier in 2025, the FIA's single-seater director Nikolas Tombazis was hopeful the governing body could cut car weights even further in future regulations. This was one reason behind last year's exploratory talks over a return to naturally aspirated power units with a much smaller ERS element in 2030 or beyond.

“We'd all like the cars to be a lot lighter,” Tombazis said. “Some of the solutions being mooted [in terms of future powertrains] would lead to significantly lighter cars, which is what everyone would like. It's a trade-off between financials, technological freedom and how cutting-edge Formula 1 is, environmental considerations, and excitement.

Fernando Alonso leading Michael Schumacher in 2005, when cars weighed 605kg

Photo by: Motorsport Images

“We can go towards negating some of the dimensional aspects of cars, but it has to be possible to come back to a car that is simpler than it is now."

Any moves to reduce car weight are being applauded by F1's drivers, who have long lamented high car weights that make their machinery sluggish to drive in low-speed corners.

"I think the [current] cars are definitely too heavy, they are too big and the ground effect and the ride heights we are racing are not really fun to drive,” said Aston Martin's Fernando Alonso, who debuted in 2001 when the car weight was below 600kg.

Mercedes' George Russell added: “It’s going in the right direction, making the cars smaller, lighter.”