F1 will see its first major aerodynamic rule changes since the 2022 season in 2026. The ground-effect era was reintroduced four seasons ago after the regulation was banned in the 1980s. This was designed to help cars follow closely behind each other, creating more wheel-to-wheel racing.
In addition to aerodynamic changes, F1 will also modify the engine regulations for the first time since the 2014 season. Hybrid engines were introduced in 2014, when Mercedes was able to jump ahead of the competition. With all the new regulations, F1 will have three testing sessions over four weeks.
F1 will test in Barcelona and Bahrain
The 2026 season will see different-looking F1 cars. They will be lighter by 30KG and the cars will be narrower, with the floor width being reduced by 150mm. The wheelbase drops from a maximum of 3600mm to 3400mm, while the width has been reduced by 100mm.
DRS will be removed from the cars; instead, an adjustable front and rear wing will be introduced. The floors will be flat, moving away from the current ground-effect era, while downforce will be reduced by 30 per cent, and drag by 50 per cent.
The engine will move towards a balanced hybrid power unit, with an even split between the internal combustion unit and electrical power. The engine will also run on sustainable fuels.
With all these changes coming in, teams need ample time to test the new car’s design and check if it correlates with the wind tunnel and CFD data. Due to the number of changes on the 2026 cars, F1 has agreed to allow three testing sessions before the start of the season.
2026 Pre-season Testing = CONFIRMED! 🗓️
A new era will begin with three pre-season tests across 11 days, in Spain and Bahrain#F1 pic.twitter.com/dcgkSTUW4o
— Formula 1 (@F1) June 30, 2025
Pre-season testing will kick off in Barcelona with a private five-day test from January 26 – 30. Following this, there will be two separate testing sessions in Bahrain. They will be on February 11 – 13 and February 18 – 20.
This gives the drivers a shorter break than normal, as pre-season testing normally begins in February. The season will conclude in Abu Dhabi on December 7, giving the drivers seven weeks before they get behind the wheel once more.
