Source: REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed
[Saba Sports News] New information regarding the
upgraded power unit for Formula 1 cars in the 2026 season has been revealed,
featuring a supercharging system designed to aid overtaking. According to the
analysis by the FIA (Federation Internationale de l’Automobile), the new power
unit in F1 will offer an additional energy boost when required. This extra
power will be activated when the car reaches a speed of 345 km/h, with a
maximum speed reaching 355 km/h. The FIA refers to this mode as the
“override” mode. To address concerns about insufficient energy
harvesting opportunities on certain tracks, the FIA has established a maximum
limit of 8.5MJ per lap for energy recovery during braking and part-load
conditions. Some media sources suggest that the new regulations for F1 in 2026
are essentially optimizations of the current Kinetic Energy Recovery System
(KERS). The existing systems recover and store power generated by the car
during braking, which is then released as auxiliary power during acceleration.
In simple terms, the KERS system converts the car’s kinetic energy into
electrical energy during deceleration, stores it in the battery, and
subsequently converts it back into kinetic energy through the engine,
controlled by the electronic control unit. The new regulations specify that the
“override” mode can only be engaged once the car reaches a speed of
345 km/h.