(Motorsport-Total.com) – Formula 1 veteran Fernando Alonso has once again launched a general criticism of the regulations for the 2026 season after the British Grand Prix. His hard-hitting analysis: With the new cars, no “driving talent” is needed at all to overtake on the track.
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This year, the premier class has launched its latest technical revolution. The profound changes affect both the chassis and the powertrain, with the latter being the real bone of contention in the paddock.
The reason: Formula 1 is moving towards an almost balanced 50:50 weight distribution between electric power and the combustion engine. This has massively changed the character of the races, as the management of the hybrid battery is now the decisive factor.
Jo-Jo racing a thorn in the side
This has created a completely new dynamic, which is called “Jo-Jo racing” in the paddock. Because the cars have extremely different energy levels, there are constant position changes – and at places where you would never have seen an overtaking maneuver before. This was clearly observed last weekend on the high-speed track in Silverstone.
Especially in the sprint race, these Jo-Jo duels occurred throughout the field. A circumstance that visibly annoys Aston Martin driver Alonso. Already at the Monaco city race, the Spaniard had complained that the 2026 cars were the “worst” he had ever driven in his career.
“It depends entirely on what the fans and the sport actually want,” Alonso stated after the Grand Prix on Sunday in Silverstone. “I watched the sprint replays again yesterday. People overtake in the middle of the straight just because they have more battery available.”
No talent needed
Alonso’s scathing judgment: “So you don’t need any driving input or talent to get past the car in front. You don’t have to brake anyone out, you don’t have to risk a maneuver on the outside line, and you don’t take any risk at all. You just press a button and pass, as long as your power unit works better at that moment than the car in front of you.”
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The current sporting situation naturally does not make things easier for Alonso. The Asturian, who has experienced numerous generations of Formula 1 cars since his debut in 2001, is struggling with Aston Martin in the backfield this season and has to contend with newcomer Cadillac.
Silverstone once again offered the now 44-year-old “more of the same”: He came away completely empty-handed in the world championship points, and to make matters worse, his AMR26 simply shut down by itself already on the formation lap.
Will Spa be a mirror image?
This “more of the same” will probably also apply to the upcoming race weekend at the Belgian Grand Prix. Alonso expects a very similar characteristic in Spa-Francorchamps as in Silverstone – due to the fast corners and long straights.
All Formula 1 cars of Fernando Alonso
“It is obvious that tracks like Silverstone and Spa consume an extreme amount of energy,” Alonso explains the dilemma. “You can’t just completely burn your extra power on the straights. Next week we face exactly the same game: If you go full throttle from turn 1 to turn 5 in Spa, it’s over for the rest of the lap. So you have to manage there so that you still have energy left when accelerating out of turn 14 up to the Bus Stop chicane.”
“But if you use the energy on these two straights – which is strategically the optimal option – then you drive for a minute in the second sector completely without hybrid boost afterwards. And without this boost, we must not forget that we have significantly less power this year than last year. When the battery is empty, we even have less power than a Formula 2 car. So yes, that is definitely a real problem area.”
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