F1 world champion Nigel Mansell has labelled overtakes seen in the sport’s new era as “totally false” in a brutal takedown of the 2026 season so far.
New engine and chassis regulations this year, which include a power unit with a near 50/50 split between internal combustion and electrical power, have resulted in energy management being a central part of qualifying and races.
The opening two rounds in Australia and China saw numerous overtakes, yet reigning world champion Lando Norris described the moves as “artificial”, given the new overtaking aids available (boost mode, overtake mode and active aerodynamics) alongside varying degrees of battery management.
Four-time world champion Max Verstappen has also described the new cars as “anti-racing” and “like Formula E on steroids” and has threatened to quit the sport, such is his dissatisfaction. And 1992 world champion Mansell has added his voice to the list of those critical, insisting some fans are “grumpy” at the changes.
“I might get shot for saying this, but sadly, some of the overtakes are just totally false,” British racing legend Mansell told Autosport.
“I mean, some of the overtakes look great and then you come out the next corner and then the car just blasts past you – and the other car goes backwards because the computer is giving you the extra power not at the right time. And the driver doesn’t control that obviously, because he wouldn’t have employed it.
“I think it was Lando [Norris] who quoted, ‘Well, I didn’t want to overtake him going into the first corner and into the chicane, but I had no choice’.
“And then coming out of the corner, he’s in the lead and then the car just blasts past him again going down the straight. So I think you’ve got to be very careful because, forget me, it doesn’t matter about me, but the fans around the world, I know an awful lot of them are very grumpy.
“And to be fair to the fans, I agree with them.”
Tweaks to the regulations – to reduce the need to ‘lift and coast’ in qualifying and lessen the risk of dramatic closing speeds in races – were made last week, yet the basis of overtaking will not dramatically change when F1 returns this weekend in Miami.
F1 CEO Stefano Domenicali has previously defended the regulations and rallied back against the notion that overtaking this year was “artificial”, despite criticism from the likes of Verstappen.
Earlier this month, Domenicali said: “Overtaking some people are saying is artificial, what is artificial? I mean, overtaking is overtaking.
“With Max, we have spoken many, many times since the beginning. So we understand that I understand his comments and he understands the bigger picture.
“Even today he has been in a meeting where he was very keen to give suggestions. So, you know, I don’t want to fall into the trap of trying to create an antagonism because that’s not me. It’s not the way that we want to see that.
“So we’re going to be together. He’s the best driver, he’s a world champion, multiple world champion, and of course, his voice has to be listened to. But of course, he knows that his voice also has a weight. And he needs to respect that weight [because] sometimes some people can take it the wrong way.
“This is something that we should not allow to happen.”
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