2026 Season

Team changes

Three new engine manufacturers enter Formula One alongside significant structural changes to the grid.

Cadillac become the eleventh constructor, the first new team on the grid since Haas in 2016. They enter using Ferrari power units and gearboxes; a transition to a General Motors power unit developed in collaboration with TWG Motorsports is planned from the 2029 season. Cadillac had previously attempted to enter the sport with Andretti Global.

Audi make their Formula One debut as a works team after purchasing the Sauber organisation in 2024. The squad raced in 2024 and 2025 as Kick Sauber using Ferrari engines before becoming the Audi factory team with their own power unit in 2026. Ferrari now supplies engines to Haas and Cadillac as customer teams.

Honda relaunched a fully independent engine programme through its Honda Racing Corporation subsidiary, entering an exclusive works partnership with Aston Martin. Honda had been a partner of Red Bull Powertrains since 2021 before splitting from the two Red Bull-owned teams. Aston Martin had previously used Mercedes power units since returning to the sport, which had supplied the team’s predecessors since 2009.

Ford return to Formula One as an engine supplier for the first time since supporting Jordan in 2004, forming a partnership with Red Bull Powertrains to supply both Red Bull Racing and Racing Bulls.

Alpine switch from Renault to Mercedes power units and gearboxes, ending Renault’s role as a supplier after the 2025 season — the first season without Renault engines since 2000. Alpine was the last team to run Renault power; the team last used customer Mercedes engines as Lotus in 2015.

Driver changes

Sergio Pérez and Valtteri Bottas join Cadillac as its two race drivers. Pérez had been under contract with Red Bull Racing through 2026, but that deal was terminated by mutual agreement at the end of the 2024 season. Bottas last competed with Sauber in 2024 and served as a Mercedes reserve driver in 2025.

Isack Hadjar moves from Racing Bulls to Red Bull Racing, replacing Yuki Tsunoda, who becomes Red Bull’s test and reserve driver. Arvid Lindblad, promoted from Formula 2, takes Hadjar’s seat at Racing Bulls.

Calendar

The 2026 season spans twenty-two Grands Prix, reduced from a planned twenty-four. The Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix were cancelled following the outbreak of the Iran war; both were scheduled for April and deemed impossible to stage safely on short notice.

The Spanish Grand Prix moves to a new street circuit in Madrid built around the IFEMA Exhibition Centre, while the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya retains its own race under the name Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix. The Emilia Romagna Grand Prix at Imola is discontinued after its contract — which ran through 2025 — was not renewed. The Azerbaijan Grand Prix is held on a Saturday to accommodate Azerbaijan’s Remembrance Day.

Six Grands Prix feature the sprint format: China, Miami, Canada, Britain, the Netherlands, and Singapore.

Regulation changes

The cost cap for team operational expenditures rises from $135 million to $215 million to account for inflation and previously exempted costs. The separate power unit cost cap increases from $95 million to $130 million to support development of the new hybrid engines.

New power unit regulations take effect for 2026. The 1.6-litre turbocharged V6 configuration introduced in 2014 is retained, but the MGU-H is removed. The MGU-K output triples from 160 bhp to 470 bhp, while the internal combustion engine output falls from 850 bhp to 540 bhp. Combined power remains above 1,000 bhp, with the units expected to recover twice as much electrical energy as before. Fuel flow is now measured by energy rather than mass, and all cars run on fully sustainable fuel. An “overtake mode” replaces the drag reduction system, deploying stored energy when a driver is within one second of the car ahead — similar to the pre-2026 DRS rules.

Cars are narrower (190 cm, down from 200 cm), shorter in wheelbase (340 cm, down from 360 cm), and 30 kg lighter at the minimum, with narrower tyres and reduced ground effect. The 2026 cars are expected to be approximately two seconds per lap slower than the 2022–2025 generation.

Sporting changes include: a minimum 55% painted or stickered livery coverage is required when viewed from the side and above; driver cooling vests are mandatory when the FIA declares a heat hazard; stewards may now initiate a review based on new evidence without requiring a competitor’s formal request; and the mandatory two-stop strategy for Monaco, introduced in 2025, is dropped after teams and drivers concluded it did not improve racing. Driver race numbers may now be changed with FIA permission.

Pre-season testing

Three pre-season tests were held — a significant expansion over previous years — to account for the new chassis and power unit regulations. The first was a private test at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya from 26–30 January; all teams except Williams participated, and Lewis Hamilton (Ferrari) set the fastest time. The second and third tests were both at the Bahrain International Circuit, from 11–13 February and 18–20 February respectively. Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) was fastest at the second test and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) at the third.