What is ‘super clipping’? Strange new F1 2026 jargon explained

Formula 1’s overhauled regulations have resulted in some pretty strange new jargon to get used to during the 2026 season.

One of the weird terms to emerge during pre-season testing in Bahrain is ‘super clipping’, which you may have heard be referenced during live broadcasts of the on-track action.

Super clipping is one of four ways the new generation of F1 cars can charge the battery, with the new-for-2026 power units having a near 50/50 split in power produced by the international combustion engine and battery power.

The others methods of energy recovery are regenerative braking, where the motor recovers energy while slowing for a corner, part-throttle overload, where the battery takes power from the engine in parts of the track where the driver does not need to be full throttle, and lift and coast, which is when the driver lifts off before corners so the electric motor can run against the engine.

Drivers have new tools at their disposal in their 2026 F1 cars, including a ‘boost’ mode which uses additional power to help with overtaking or defending.

The enhanced power delivery from the battery has placed a greater emphasis on the amount of energy management and recovery drivers need to do across a lap. This is expected to result in drivers needing to have to lift-and-coast on flying laps in qualifying.

“You give it full power from everything you've got; I.C.E., the battery, deployment, 350 kilowatts and once you reach terminal velocity, you can start to throttle back. A bit like a plane, when it gets up,” Sky Sports F1’s Anthony Davidson explained.

“And when you've turned the engine down, then you're just on internal combustion power, so you're not getting any deployment anymore from the battery, it’s time is done. When you're sailing along, you're just cruising with the I.C.E. At some point near the braking zone at the end of the first straight, the super clip will kick in. The super clip is like engaging a dynamo. So it'll really slow you down at 250 kilowatts of energy.

“It's all a calculation of where the system feels it should harvest energy and deploy the energy.”

F1 conducting super clipping experiments

F1 teams have been invited to run with reduced electric power deployment at times during the final week of pre-season testing in Bahrain to try and resolve the main complaints about the 2026 power units.

The current rules do not allow the MGU-K to run beyond 250kW due to safety corners, but teams are set to trial super clipping at 350kW on the final day of running in Sakhir.

“So there's an argument to say, instead of 250 kilowatts of super clip allowance, why not let the electric motor do its thing at full power of 350 kilowatts? Because it can do,” Davidson continued.

“The argument against it was safety. So you've got the rain lights and the reason why the rain lights flash is to warn other drivers of what the deployment's doing. So the car will go slower, even though the driver's full throttle.”

Williams driver and Grand Prix Drivers’ Association (GPDA) director Carlos Sainz urged the FIA to remain “open-minded” to altering the 2026 rules surrounding energy management if they become “exaggerated”.

“I think Melbourne is going to be more challenging for sure, but I cannot tell you how much because I haven't run the calibrations in the simulator of what we're going to find ourselves in Melbourne with,” Sainz said on the penultimate day of pre-season testing.

“I think in general, my message to the FOM and FIA is I think the start of the year we need to stay a bit open-minded in case the regulations that we've come up with are maybe a bit exaggerated on the amount of harvesting or deployment that we have to do through a lap, which might make some circuits okay, like potentially here [Bahrain], even though I still think here is not fully okay with what we're seeing so far.

“But tracks like Melbourne or potentially Jeddah, tracks that might be more energy demanding, I think we might need to adjust a bit the regulations.

“And fair play is not easy because it's such a big change that I don't think anyone knew how to predict how much downforce, drag the car was going to have, what level of deployment the teams would come up with.

“But so far, I would say I would only ask to stay open in case we need to fine-tune or adjust to make the category and make the show better. That's my only message. I think that I think we should start to stay flexible rather than be committed to a certain level of energy management.”

Are F1’s new rules too complicated?

Lewis Hamilton has been one of the most vocal in expressing concerns that the complexity of F1’s new rules could confuse and turn off fans.

"None of the fans are going to understand it, I don't think," the Ferrari driver said during the first week of pre-season testing in Bahrain.

"It's ridiculously complex. I sat in a meeting the other day and they're taking us through it. It's like you need a degree to fully understand it all.”

Four-time world champion Max Verstappen has been brutally critical of the new rules and cars, branding them as “Formula E on steroids” and “not a lot of fun” to drive.

"The right word is management. But on the other hand, I also know how much work has been going on in the background. Also from the engine side, for the guys. So it's not always the nicest thing to say," Verstappen said in the first week in Bahrain. 

"But I also want to be realistic. As a driver, the feeling is not very Formula 1-like. It feels a bit more like Formula E on steroids.

"As a pure driver, I enjoy driving flat out. And at the moment, you cannot drive like that. There's a lot going on. A lot of what you do as a driver, in terms of inputs, has a massive effect on the energy side of things.

"For me, that's just not Formula 1. Maybe it's better to drive Formula E, right? Because that's all about energy efficiency and management. That's what they stand for. Driving-wise, it's not so fun."