Alonso calls for 'fixes and improvements' over controversial 2026 engine algorithms
Photo: Race Pictures
08:01, 17 Aug
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Henry Eccles is a freelance Formula 1 journalist for GPblog, covering breaking news, live race blogs, and features across the F1 calendar. Since joining in 2026, he has produced high-volume reporting on the sport’s biggest stories, alongside feature pieces including analysis and historical content.
Fernando Alonso has said the algorithms dictating 2026 F1 cars' energy deployment must be "fixed and improved," amid continuing driver frustration with the new generation of power unit regulations.
Under the 2026 rules, the cars' power delivery is split nearly 50/50 between electrical power and internal combustion, with a 'self-learning' computer algorithm critical to deciding how the battery deployment is used throughout a lap and constantly adapting to inputs from the driver.
With deployment already mapped out by software before the race, drivers are unable to 100% control deployment themselves, a quirk of the 2026 cars that has come under criticism from several drivers this season.
Speaking after the Belgian GP at Spa-Francorchamps, arguably the most difficult track for the 2026 cars so far, McLaren's Oscar Piastri lamented a "pretty crap way of going racing." He said: "It sucks. I can’t really say it any other way than that. I certainly wouldn’t have been the only person [to complain]."
Piastri added: "When you’ve got qualifying grids decided by computers behaving or misbehaving, it’s a pretty crap way of going racing."
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Alonso calls for change over F1 2026 algorithms
Photo: Race Pictures
Ahead of the next race at the Hungarian GP, prior to the sport's summer break, Aston Martin's Alonso was asked whether the stipulation in the F1 regulations that drivers must drive "unaided and alone" was in doubt due to the impact of the 2026 algorithms.
Alonso, competing in his 23rd F1 season, replied: "I think Formula 1 has always been a little bit like that. I don’t think the drivers were deciding everything, even when we had traction control and some of the other aids.
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"It was very specific to each team, developed by each team in a different way, with different philosophies. You were pressing the throttle at the exit of the corners, and some cars were much better than the others. It’s not pure driver talent or input on some of the exits.
"It’s the same with the starts. I’ve been doing starts for 25 years, and we’ve had many different regulations. At the end of the day, there were always some cars and some teams starting better than the others, with both cars. It’s not just that someone was doing something differently with the clutch, with a technique or with the throttle application. Both cars from that team were extremely good or extremely bad. I think the team is always bringing the performance to everything."
While certain driver aids may not be anything new in 2026, Alonso nonetheless conceded that the current regulations surrounding the computer algorithms have to be "fixed and improved."
Optimistic that changes can be made, either in the form of tweaks for upcoming seasons, or a potential move back to V8 engines in the 2030s, the two-time world champion continued: "But yes, I think with these current regulations and the battery deployment, there is something that has to be fixed and improved.
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"I think that’s well understood. We are in the first half of this set of regulations, in the first year, and there are already talks about 2030 or 2031 and the V8. Next year, there is already approval for the change to the combustion versus electrical part of the engine.
"There are things moving forward, and it’s well understood by the sport, by the teams and by everyone. I’m optimistic for the future that it will get better and that it will be better understood what the rules are and what the cars need to be."
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F1-stand 2026
Season
| Pos. | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | MercedesMER | 219 | |
2 | FerrariFER | 169 | |
3 | MercedesMER | 160 | |
4 | FerrariFER | 138 | |
5 | McLarenMCL | 128 | |
6 | Red Bull RacingRBR | 109 | |
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8 | Red Bull RacingRBR | 68 | |
9 | Racing BullsRCB | 43 | |
10 | AlpineALP | 42 |
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