You might have heard, Formula 1 has all-new regulations this year — a change that Lewis Hamilton described as the “biggest in my career.”
But the rules aren’t the only things different for the 2026 campaign.
ESPN guides you through all the changes ahead of testing and the opening race.
2026 is a huge moment for Formula 1 that will see both the chassis and power units updated in the biggest overhaul of regulations in the sport’s history.
Under the new rules, the cars themselves will be shorter, thinner, lighter and nimbler, with the stated aim of creating better racing.
Perhaps the best bit of news for haters of the last generation of cars is a simplification of things across the board. The long ground-effect tunnels of the last cars are being replaced by flatter floors and side pods with bigger openings, leading to significantly less drag on the straights. Front and rear wings are also becoming much less complex, with active aerodynamics replacing DRS.
Beneath the bodywork, there are new, more road-relevant engines that attracted several manufacturers.
The hybrid element of the engine becomes more significant this year, producing 50% of its power output from the battery and 50% from an internal combustion engine fueled by advanced sustainable fuels.
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F1 introduced four new key words of terminology at the end of last year, focusing on the driver taking “centre stage” with more responsibility than ever before.
Overtake Mode replaces DRS, with a driver able to deploy extra power to help initiate an overtake when within one second of the car ahead. It can be used all at once or spread across a lap.
Boost Mode is a driver-operated energy deployment tool drawn from the Energy Recovery System, allowing drivers to access maximum combined power from the engine and battery.
Active Aero is the adjustment of front and rear wing elements between Corner Mode and Straight Mode depending on where they are on track to alter downforce and drag.
Recharge, meanwhile, is the process of replenishing the battery during a lap.
The F1 grid expands to 22 cars for the first time since 2016 as Cadillac becomes the 11th team with backing from General Motors.
The newest team will have two of the most experienced drivers as Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Pérez return, with a combined 16 wins and 527 starts between them.
The American team has been taking lessons from NASA space programs and has a British boss, Graeme Lowdon, who compares himself to an “inverse Ted Lasso” for the culture shock of working in U.S. auto racing.
Arvid Lindblad, 18, will be the only rookie in 2026 at Racing Bulls.
Lindblad, born in Surrey to a Swedish father and Indian-British mother, competes under the British flag and has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the junior categories.
Eight of 10 existing teams, meanwhile, have played it safe with the same driver lineup so the only other change is Isack Hadjar moving up to Red Bull to join Verstappen.
Yuki Tsunoda drops into a reserve role.
Audi unveil their livery for the 2026 F1 season following their takeover of Sauber.
Audi will make its F1 debut this year following a takeover of the Swiss Sauber team in 2025.
Last year’s Sauber drivers — Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto — will remain at the team in 2026 following the rebranding.
They already have a bold five-year plan, targeting an F1 title by 2030.
Max Verstappen and Isack Hadjar help reveal Oracle Red Bull Racing’s new livery design for the 2026 season.
Red Bull will enter the new regulations with a fresh engine partnership alongside automotive giant Ford, which is co-funding the power units Red Bull Powertrains is developing in-house. The move marks a major shift for the Milton Keynes team as it prepares for life under Formula 1’s next technical era.
That agreement also signals the end of Red Bull’s long-running relationship with Honda. The Japanese manufacturer will instead return as a full works power unit supplier to Aston Martin, where design legend Adrian Newey is set to become team principal as part of a wide-ranging restructure.
Another notable change comes from Renault’s decision to end its Formula 1 power unit programme. As a result, Alpine will switch to customer Mercedes engines, bringing further realignment to the grid as the sport heads into 2026.

The Madring is the one new circuit on the 2026 calendar. The Madrid street circuit takes over the Spanish Grand Prix title from Barcelona, which stays on the calendar as Spain gets a second race for the first time since 2012.
That means no space for Italy’s second F1, the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix at the Imola circuit, which has held five races since 2020.
Information from ESPN’s Laurence Edmondson, Nate Saunders and Associated Press was used in this report.

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