🏎️ Everything that has changed in 2026 – El Box de Franco

The perfect pause to understand the new regulations and how they affected the opening races

Published

08 Jul 2026

Est. reading time

3 min

We don't have a race this weekend

So it's the perfect moment to take a step back and understand what's really happening out on track

The 2026 season kicked off with the biggest technical shake-up in recent Formula 1 history. Smaller, lighter cars, a completely new engine and the end of DRS as we knew it.

And Franco is learning it all in real time, alongside the best drivers in the world.

🔋 The engine: half electric, half combustion

The biggest change of 2026 is the new power unit. For the first time in history, half of the energy powering the car comes from the electrical system. That means how and when Franco, or any driver, uses that energy is just as important as raw speed.

There are three key modes Franco manages every single lap:

Recharge: the car recovers energy under braking, when lifting off the throttle or in super clipping mode at the end of the straights. Most of it is automatic, but the driver decides when to activate some of these modes.

Boost Button: a button Franco can press to deploy maximum power from the engine and battery at the moment he needs it most, whether to attack or defend.

Overtake Mode: if Franco gets within one second of the car ahead at a specific point on the track, he gets access to additional electrical power for the entire following lap. This is the replacement for DRS.

The new aero: goodbye DRS, hello Active Aero

The DRS we watched for years is gone. In its place, the cars have adjustable front and rear wing flaps that change automatically depending on where the car is on the track:

In corners (Z-Mode): the flaps close to generate more downforce and provide grip

On straights (X-Mode): the flaps open to reduce drag and gain top speed

The result is a car that constantly adapts to the layout, without the driver having to manually activate anything on the rear wing.

🚗 Smaller and lighter cars

The 2026 cars are noticeably different from last season: 30 kg lighter + 200 mm shorter wheelbase + 100 mm narrower + up to 40% less total aerodynamic drag.

Smaller, more agile and with less downforce. In theory, easier to follow and to overtake.

The super clipping problem: what happened in the opening races

None of this was easy to take on board from day one. The opening races revealed problems that nobody had fully anticipated: super clipping.

On circuits with few heavy braking points, like Australia, Japan and Silverstone, the cars run out of electrical energy before completing the lap. When that happens, the car loses power suddenly in the middle of a straight or a fast corner. Drivers arrive much slower than expected at corners that used to be taken flat out.

The FIA has already taken steps to reduce the problem, and each race has improved. But managing energy lap by lap remains one of the most important factors of this season.

And how does the team see Franco in the middle of all these changes?

Franco isn't just learning to drive a completely new car. He's also building his place at Alpine. Flavio Briatore made it clear in a recent interview: Franco has improved a lot, mentally and technically. With 18 points in the championship and top-10 results in China, Miami, Canada, Barcelona and Silverstone, Franco is proving he can grow alongside this new era.

🩵 The FranClub43 in this new era

This is the most technical and complex F1 in recent history. And Franco is living it from the inside.

But the good news is he always has the FranClub alongside him. Thank you for always cheering him on!

GENERAL

REDES SOCIALES

APOYO

APLICACIONES