Last-minute F1 rule change made to combat Japanese GP energy fears

Formula 1’s governing body the FIA has made a last-minute rule change to reduce the amount of energy saving required at the Japanese Grand Prix.

During F1 qualifying at Suzuka, drivers will only be allowed to harvest 8MJ of energy, reduced from the previous limit of 9MJ, in a late change to the regulations.

This will cut the amount of energy management the drivers need to make during a qualifying lap and should reduce the amount of super clipping as a result.

Like the season-opening Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne, Suzuka is another F1 circuit that is expected to expose cars to energy-saving risks. The issue was not so apparent at the Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai last time out.

The move, which follows discussions between manufacturers and the FIA, and subsequent simulation work, should reduce the need for drivers to switch into harvesting mode to help charge the battery while running on full throttle.

Suzuka was previously set to be a venue where a 9MJ limit would be allowed per lap in qualifying.

F1’s governing body said the change to the rules, which originally was not set to be made until after this weekend at the earliest, had received “unanimous support”.

“Following discussions between the FIA, F1 teams and power unit manufacturers, a minor adjustment to the energy management parameters for qualifying at the Japanese GP has been agreed with the unanimous support of all power unit manufacturers,” the FIA said in a statement.

“To ensure that the intended balance between energy deployment and driver performance is maintained, the maximum permitted energy recharge for qualifying this weekend has been reduced from 9.0 MJ to 8.0 MJ. This adjustment reflects feedback from drivers and teams, who have emphasised the importance of maintaining qualifying as a performance challenge.”

There will be no changes for the race itself on Sunday, with further discussions set to be held in the five-week gap between Japan and Miami following the cancellation of the Middle East double-header in April due to the Iran war.

“The FIA notes that the first events under the 2026 regulations have been operationally successful, and this targeted refinement is part of the normal process of optimisation as the new regulatory framework is further validated in real-world conditions,” the FIA continued.

“The FIA, together with F1 teams and power unit manufacturers, continues to embrace evolutions to energy management, with further discussions scheduled in the coming weeks.”

Rule change 'not a game-changer'

Ferrari driver Charles Leclerc does not expect the rule change to be a "game-changer", but believes it is a step in the right direction for F1.

“I don’t think it will be a game-changer,” Leclerc replied when asked if the energy recharge changes could impact F1’s pecking order in qualifying.

“I think it will be pretty similar, apart from for the driver where maybe a little bit less lift and coast, which I think is a good thing.

“For qualifying there are still some changes that need to be done to make sure that we can push at the maximum of whatever the limit of the car is. At the moment, for the first two races, it was more about managing everything properly in qualifying, rather than the actual flat-out push that we were used to in Q3 in the past years.

“So there is still some fine-tuning to be done on that but I don’t think this particular change will be a game-changer for this weekend.”