F1’s ‘Yo-Yo Racing’ problem returns at Spa-Francorchamps
(Photo: Race Pictures)
10:04, 16 Jul
1 Comments
From a children’s toy to one of Formula 1’s most feared phrases, ‘yo-yo racing’ is back on the agenda at the Belgian Grand Prix.
The term has come to define the type of battles we’re seeing in under the new era of regulations, with drivers making moves, only to drain their batteries and be overtaken moments later.
In the opening two rounds in Australia and China, there were few complaints, with the former more entertaining than usual and the latter providing a Ferrari scrap for the ages.
However, as time has worn on, the novelty has worn off. Japan’s iconic Suzuka being robbed of flat-out racing saw the dissent increase, and it was only dampened due to track specifics.
Monaco’s lack of straights saw a respite from battery management issues and Austria’s heavy-braking zones also plastered over the issue.
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Yet it returned in full force for Silverstone, and Spa-Francorchamps has very similar characteristics.
Verstappen fears another “painful” race at his favourite circuit
Giving his take, four-time champion and huge critic of the new rules, Max Verstappen, wasn’t hopeful:
“I love Spa, but it’s going to be another painful one just because of the energy like here.
“It is my favourite track on the calendar and is always good to be back. I think it could be trickier with the energy management limitations on the straights but we have historically done well here so you never know what will happen.”
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Piastri warns Spa and Monza could be the toughest tests yet
Last year’s winner, Oscar Piastri, was similarly concerned while speaking to GPBlog and others:
“I think these tracks where you've got so much speed, so many straights where you're not at full power, it's just chaotic. Austria, I think had the potential for it to be a bit chaotic, but you've got all the straights so early in the lap that you don't actually really run out of power that quickly.
“Whereas here, like by the time you've got halfway to Turn 6 already, you've already run out of battery on a normal lap. Then you've got to Turn 9. Like, you've got so many straights where you're not at full power that if you choose to save or use it, the delta is huge. So I think it's the layout of the track, Spa and Monza are going to be sad.”
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Yet despite Piastri’s concerns, his McLaren team principal wasn’t so down post-Silverstone:
“It will be a heavily energy-starving circuit. I think, actually, here we have to say that the preoccupation that we had to start with in terms of lacking energy somehow was mitigated, and we had good racing.
Piastri beat Norris to the win last year (Photo: Race Pictures)
“The straits are even longer in Spa, and there will be some challenges in terms of power unit exploitation. It will be about energy deployment for sure. I think we will see quite an exciting race when it comes to overtaking.”
Alonso explains the energy deployment dilemma at Spa
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Giving a more technical take, two-time champion Fernando Alonso explained where the problems will lie in Belgium:
“Obviously, Silverstone and Spa, they are very dependent on energy. You cannot deploy in all on the straights. Next week, it is going to be the same thing.
“If you deploy in Spa from Turn 1 to 5, it is finito for the rest of the lap. So, you need to save a little bit there to have deployment from 14 to the bus stop [chicane].
“But if you deploy in those two straights, which is the optimal deployment, then there is one minute, sector two, with no deployment at all.”
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One of the grid’s youngest drivers, Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto, wasn’t interested in the talk, however:
"Obviously, last year it was a different concept, but I think we should turn the page. Those are the regulations we're living right now. If there are still people complaining about it, just move the page. That's the regulations we have until 2030.
"But we cannot spend three years talking about the same problem every time, you know, because that's what we have. The cars are still fun to drive. It's different. We need to adapt to that and it's life."
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Belgian Grand Prix
Overview
Friday 17.07.26
Practice 1
11:30 AM
Practice 2
03:00 PM
Saturday 18.07.26
Practice 3
10:30 AM
Qualification
02:00 PM
Sunday 19.07.26
Race
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Friday 17.07.26
Practice 1
Fri 11:30 AM
Practice 2
Fri 03:00 PM
Saturday 18.07.26
Practice 3
Sat 10:30 AM
Qualification
Sat 02:00 PM
Sunday 19.07.26
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